Tales of RAGE
by Benclave
Summary: A tortured genius, a scared rockstar turned terrorist, a formerly lactose-intolerant canine, and a long time descendent of a war criminal... Say hello to Team RAGE.
1. Chapter 1: Nightshade

**A/N: So, this is my first fic i have published on the site and HOLYCRAP am i nervous. This was made in cooperation with G+ user MAYA I. HENDRICKS so half the love goes to my blood angle,**

 **So, without further ado, here is our FIRST CHAPTER FOR TRIALS OF THE DAMNED!**

 **Disclaimer: We do not own RWBY, the rights to the show belong to Rooster Teeth.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1:** _Nightshade_

"Well… that was quite an event."

"Are you referring to the Grimm that invaded the city, or the council giving General Ironwood your job?"

Professor Ozpin let out an exasperated sigh before taking a sip from his coffee mug. _Just where does Oobleck get this coffee?_ Ozpin allowed his eyes to drift closed; taking a moment to savor the taste of the hot beverage. The drink seemed to help clear his mind of any remaining stress from the recent events that had transpired the day before.

The breach.

He set the mug down on his desk once again, an air of seriousness overtaking his once calm visage. It had been an unexpected occurrence, but even Ozpin knew that it was likely to happen; after all Vale was far from indestructible.

 _Indestructible…_

The word that seemed to have so many complications and loop-holes attached to it. The headmaster was no fool; he knew that no civilization had the perfect defense. That was why the Atlassian army existed, the sole reason Hunters and Huntresses existed, to fill the gaps in those _indestructible_ defenses. The breach had solidified that notion tenfold. Ozpin cleared his throat, brushing those thoughts aside for the time being.

"The stray Grimm have been taken care of according to the reports that we received." Ozpin stated, deciding that it would be best not to address her following statement. "Though it seems the people are rather angry, as they would be." The people would have been easy enough to calm down if he still had the position to allow him so, but with Ironwood taking over; he wasn't allowed to disclose such information without his consent. _And I know that he won't_.

That was exactly why Ozpin hadn't wanted his friend to hold the scepter as the saying went.

General Ironwood was exactly as his title stated, a general of _war._ He always tried to state that his position was far more complicated than that of a warmonger, but Ozpin and Glynda were no fools. Ironwood was in a position that was not suited for a time of peace. His tactics were from a time of bloodshed, and mistrust. All of which that he had only read about and never truly experienced first-hand, and to top it all off, he was near delusional with how to treat any of these threats. If he gives in to the obvious trap that has been set upon the board, everything that he touches will die…

 _Everything he touches... will die?_

And just as this line played across his mind, Glynda decided to make a call. _Honestly Ozpin, as long as you keep drifting off, I might as well make use of the quiet._ So she dialed the number that has been personally etched into her mind. She waited patiently as her scroll rang, hoping that the person she contacted was in a better mood. _I should have sent her gift ahead of time!_

* * *

BBBBBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM

 _Maybe just two fingers next time?_

"The purple pumbler was up to her old experiments again" as the neighbors _used to_ say. She had toned things down a bit, especially after she had been forced to pay for any damages she caused. Though there was no longer anyone to complain as such about her antics since they had left when she first got the gloves.

"Gloves?" you may ask. These were no ordinary gloves. In fact they couldn't really be considered gloves at all, they were explosive-gel dispensing, dust infused gloves. Obviously they were dangerous, but she didn't have to worry about burning down, or freezing, someone's home anymore; not when she had access to a miniature in home arena. One of the **many** perks of having Glynda Goodwitch as a mother; an adoptive mother, but a mother no less.

The arena wasn't too big, but it wasn't ridiculously small either, in fact, it was probably about half the size of Beacon's training arena. One half of it was dedicated to her experimental dust gels, along with various weapon blueprints, and artillery. The other half held her _toys_ ; all the adorable Grimm she kept here to practice with if her mother wasn't around to spar with her. Of course she didn't keep too many in her area, just one or two, mainly Ursai; she liked a challenge but she wasn't crazy enough to bring any larger Grimm into her playhouse. Plus it would be quite the hassle trying to make more space for any of the bigger subjects she desired, and she doubted her mother would allow her to keep them anyways.

As she finished with her newest experiment, her scroll started vibrating. She didn't have to look at the photo on the screen to know that it was said mother. She picked up the device with a smile, tapping the answer key. But as she answered the call, the Ursa Major she had been toying with saw an opening. _Damn it. Forgot to kill my toys first._

"This seems as good a time as any to talk with my daughter," said the surprisingly male voice on the other end.

"Ozpin?" she stated in a slightly surprised manner. The Ursa lunged at her, The Haze of Death, believing that it could actually touch such a scholar. "Where's mom?" she asked casually, as she leaped effortlessly over the dense brute. _Do you mind, I'm on the scroll!_ she thought while slapping and poking juuust the right spots with juuuuuust the right dusts, before setting her feet on the ground, behind the stupid creature. The Ursa attempted to turn to her, but as soon as it moved, it burst into wisps of darkness.

"She's busy at the moment-,' _**GIVE ME BACK THE SCROLL OZPIN!**_ The sweaty shade could hear from the background, 'but she asked me to call for her."

"Uh huh, sure that's _exactly_ what happened." she said whilst rolling her eyes in amusement. "Hey! Tell her I got the gift she sent me, and that it fits PERFECTLY!"

"I'll be sure to tell her-,' _**TELL ME WHAT?!**_ , 'later, but I was hoping to ask you a favor."

The purple scholar raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "What kind of favor do you have in mind, Pops?" she asked as she headed to the fully stocked kitchen she spent her meals in, half of the time by herself. She didn't mind it; she understood that her mother's job was quite demanding at times; especially with all the new students coming in.

"Have you heard about what's happened in Vale recently?"

"Ummm...," her eyes drifted to the mountains of test results she had recorded over the last few days. "I've been far too busy to keep up with such events."

"In other words, you've been experimenting almost 24/7 these past few days."

"What? I didn't blow anything up," She paused. "At least… Not beyond repair."

"I'll take your word for it-,' _**that's it, give me back the damn scroll! Glynda I'm not finished yet… OW!**_ ,'hey Azure." stated Glynda, slightly winded.

"... I'll just pretend I didn't hear the battle of all battles just now." She held in a chuckle at the small groan that drifted into her ear. "Or that Pops seems to be dying slowly and painfully."

"Don't worry; I'll forge a will so you get his cane, anyway happy birthday!"

"Hehe thanks. I loved the gift too, even though I told you not to get me anything."

"Oh... OH of course, the gift, right, how does it feel?"

Clearly getting the notion that pops sent the gift, she decided to have a bit of fun with it. "Like a glove, but I'm surprised you'd send me a thong from Vacuo for my birthday." she said doing her best to hold back the laughter. "I didn't even know they made them this small…" She had to bite her lip to keep from busting a gut.

"WHAT! OZPIN I AM GOING TO MURDER- wait…"

Azure was flat out bawling her eyes out in hysteria. "I can't believe you actually fell for that." She clutched her sides as she laughed, nearly dropping her scroll, and oatmeal cookies in the process.

"Very funny, you're lucky it's your birthday young lady."

"You make me sound like I'm still a kid, I drink milk." She proclaimed it proudly; her tone seemed to leave no room for argument.

"Right, yet at the mention of no sweets for two weeks, you grovel for forgiveness" Glynda retorted with a confident tone.

"Well anyone would, restricting sweets is a fate worse than… never mind, I'm not gonna go there." Her voice held a hint of melancholy. She shook off the darker thoughts that tried to plague her mind; today was a happy day, and she would keep it that way.

"Good girl, we don't want to go there. Now what did Ozpin **really** send you?" she asked trying to keep her daughter from drifting away.

"An amazing new pair of grenade gloves, like the prototypes I designed last year." Her tone seemed to brighten, and was slightly muffled having stuffed a cookie in her mouth. She had just reached the living room and decided to change the method of communication. "Hang on; I'm switching the call to the TV."

With a few flicks and taps on her scroll, Azure had switched the call to a video chat from the living room TV and the monitor in Pop's office.

"Ah, there's the birthday girl!" Ozpin proclaimed in his slightly pained tone, applying an ice bag to his assaulted testicles.

"Ouch. Kicked or riding crop?" she asked to know how bad to feel for him.

"Kicked. Already had a rather horrid day, so she showed mercy." He adjusted the ice bag with a small grunt, emphasizing his pain.

"Ya, speaking of which, you two look like hell. Got too frisky last night?" she asked with an amused grin on her face.

"If only it were that simple." Glynda stated, seemingly unaware of the quip her daughter had made.

"What, did something happen?" Azure was able to pick up on the hint of dread in her mother's voice. She even put her cookies down, signaling her full attention.

"There has been an attack on the city by the White Fang," Ozpin stated calmly.

"There were no casualties, and the property damages were minimal, but the real destruction was never intended for the physical city."

"Mom, you're talking in riddles again, just say it."

Glynda took a breath before she laid it out on the table. "Ironwood has taken the position of head of security of the Vytal festival."

"Damn, well that's not gonna end well. Isn't he the guy you said that treats everything like a measuring of d-"

"Yes, that's the one Azurine." Ozpin quickly interjected. "And do please watch your language; we don't need a carbon copy of your mother."

"Please, like we're that similar." Glynda stated in an amused tone.

"We kinda are Mom," Azure mumbled as she took another cookie captive. She couldn't resist her sweets, even if it were just for a few minutes.

"She says as she devours a cookie." she states with a smirk she makes no attempts at hiding. "Honestly, you are almost exactly like Ru-" she stops herself mid-name.

"Hm? Did you say something Mom?" Azure hadn't been paying attention; she had been focused solely on her cookie.

"It was nothing, anyway, since the attack; the acceptance rate of hunters has gone down since the breach on the city." Ozpin interjected.

"Does this have anything to do with that favor you were talking about by any chance?"

"Yes. Not only has our reputation gone down, but so has school morale amongst the students."

"... No Pops." Azure deadpanned while nomming on a cookie once again. She knew what he was up to, he had tried to convince her to do this countless times before.

"I'm with my daughter on this Ozpin; she is not enrolling at Beacon." Glynda responded with a stare that would freeze most other humans and hunters.

But not Pr. Ozpin. "I know it would be tough to adapt, but-"

"No Pops. How many times do I have to say it, I'm not going to enroll, and nothing you say is going to convince me." Azure's tone held an edge of finality and agitation.

"They almost killed Yang."

…

…

…

"... YOU MENTION THIS NOW?! SERIOUSLY OZPIN?" Azure took a moment to breathe before continuing. "Is Ruby okay?"

"During the mission, she was captured, but-"

"Nothing happened right? She's not hurt is she?" Azure's eyes changed briefly for a second before returning to her purple orbs.

"She's alright, and so is Yang, and Zwei, they-"

"Wait, Zwei? Since when do you allow pets on missions?"

"Since Ms. Rose had the surprisingly brilliant idea to smuggle him along for the mission."

"A bit misguided, but I guess he would be useful for tracking purposes."

"So now that you know what's happened, what do you say?" Ozpin asked in a serious tone.

"... I'll think about it, and that isn't a definite yes! Got it Pops?"

"Of course, _get the airship ready._ -."

"I heard that Pops. I swear if an airship shows up here, I will-"

"We shall await your response, good bye Azure." Ozpin interrupted hastily.

"HEY WAIT-" but Ozpin had already hung up. A triumphant smirk on his face.

* * *

"Please tell me you've cut off her access to nightshade." Ozpin asked as he took another small sip of his coffee.

"Of course I did, knowing you wouldn't give her a choice on the matter. It would be rather unfortunate if a drop of nightshade made its way into your coffee now wouldn't it Ozpin?" Glynda's smile was anything but friendly.

Ozpin felt a shiver run down his spine at that particular memory. He hoped Azure wasn't plotting her inevitable revenge.


	2. Chapter 2: Silver

**A/N:**

 **DA: Hey guys, this is author one, and I would just like to say thanks for staying interested with the story enough to read the second chapter, of our first fic together!**

 **Maya: Author two here demands cookies! :3**

 **DA:... I'm so sorry about her.**

 **Maya: Fuck you. I just want my cookies dammit!**

 **Disclaimer: We do not own RWBY, which is the property of Rooster teeth productions.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2:** _Silver_

 _I wonder if I should dye them soon…_

"Hey Ronin, you ready yet?" called a feminine, tomboyish voice, from the other side of the bathroom door.

"Hold on, let me wrap up first." Which he did, but not in the manner most would associate with 'wrapping up'. Sure he finished his bathroom necessities, showering, fixing his hair and such, but he had more than just his hygiene to take care of. Well… technically, it still counted as hygiene, but this was a bit abnormal to place under such categories. So to finish off his daily routine, he had one last task to take care of, albeit his favorite.

"Now the combing." he said with a slight smile on his face. He grabbed a special comb he always carried with him in case something caused him irritation. He removed the towel from his back, rather sure they were dry enough by now.

 _Damn it! Still damp!_ He huffed in annoyance; he had never been one for patience after all.

Especially when it came to grooming his wings.

 _Maybe I should dye them blue; I haven't done anything with them in a while. Plus people would think I was flying with my aura; that would be priceless!_

He admired his extra appendages fondly; they were his pride and joy. His feathers were a pristine white, and they were incredibly soft to the touch; he made sure they were kept nice as to keep up the illusion; even if people hated him because of his beauties, he still attempted to make them look decent, even if he hides them as a cloak.

"Ronin, seriously, stop preening already," The same feminine voice from before drifted through the door.

"I'm not… what the heck is preening?"

He heard what seemed to be an exasperated sigh from the other side, "Honestly Ronin, your part bird and you don't know what preening is?! Ugh it doesn't matter, just hurry up already."

"Alright, but I want the definition when I come out." _hehehe 'come out' as if._

Ronin chuckled to himself as he imagined his old friend Dexter finally admitting he was gay.

"PAN-sexual!" would be Dex's response, and Ronin would always reply, "Oh right, gay and in denial." and the two would always end their conversations on that note. _It was nice to see that he had settled in nicely since he moved._

Just as he was about to exit, he remembered one last thing, "the string!" He quickly grabbed the string he kept with him as a disguise. First he wrapped himself in his wings, being careful not to ruffle his feathers too much. Next he grabbed the fake hood he kept as to make his wings appear as part of a shroud. Finally, he took the string that his sister,-"For Oum's sake, HURRY UP!", had found when they were little kids. He took the string and made a knot that rested in place in between his wings, thus completing the illusion.

"There, does it look right?" he asked his older sister.

"Perfect. Now let's go!" She ushered him quickly out of the bathroom. "We've got things to do, and I am NOT about to let you waste precious daylight."

"Hold on a sec, we aren't even docked yet, squirt." said the older man in his fifties, lying on the bed to ease his horrid pain.

"Exactly, which means, once we hit shore we have to get off, which means _someone_ won't be able to raid the frozen yogurt machine one la-,"

"Oh crap you're right! Thanks sis!" he called as he rushed to the sky deck, leaving his sister in the cabin doorway.

"Really? That's what gets you to hurry up?" She sighed before following after him; she couldn't just let him travel on his own.

Ronin may be 18, but he was still impulsive and childish as ever. She didn't mind it too much; it was what made Ronin, well, Ronin.

 _I just wish he would show as much social maturity, as he does morally._

Ronin was quiet; he kept to himself around people he didn't really know. He was anything but introverted, it was just a matter of finding someone with the same interests as him that was hard; he couldn't get to know people if he never tried to break the ice.

Though Jenna knew it was hard enough for him since he had to hide the fact that he had wings. Dexter was the only person outside of their family that didn't care about Ronin's faunus attributes.

Even other faunus treated him differently because of his wings. Sure the fanus were treated poorly, but having wings was rather rare even for faunus. Especially, if said faunus was from a family of humans.

It had been unexpected obviously, having a brother with wings, but Jenna didn't care. To her, Ronin's wings were just another way to represent him as an individual, even if it did sound cliche, it was true.

And her brother couldn't imagine life without them.

* * *

As expected, Ronin was the first off the ship, after his hunt for yogurt had failed, but he took a moment to gaze at the city he'd dearly missed before they would set off on the town by car.

Vale. His home, and we was glad to live in such an amazing kingdom. Not many of the kingdoms had such diversity and culture as the harbor kingdom; of course the other kingdoms weren't too bad, he just liked Vale the most. It was probably because everywhere he went, he could still smell the ocean breeze. He could always count on the scent to calm him, even when his senses had been clouded with anger or despair.

But sometimes the sea wasn't always enough to keep him calm, and Ronin was known very well for his temper. It wasn't that he was easily angered per say, it was that he had the tendency to use a rather hostile tone of voice when speaking, or over exaggerating his comments.

Thought the same could not be said for the rest of Vale. _There's either a storm a brewing', or I still have my sea legs._

As the car left the harbor, once all appropriate luggage was collected, the very first thing that Ronin had noticed, besides the smell of the harbor's resident, was the faint chanting. "Hey sis do you hear that?" Ronin asked with a curious glance. He couldn't make out what it was, considering it sounded suppressed for some reason.

"Hear what?" came the response from his sister.

The family soon got their answer, as some sort of demonstration seemed to be in order. Ronin was unable to make out what the head speaker was saying, but Jenna was, regretfully, able to discern what he said. It wasn't just any common work strike; it was a miniature Faunus hate gathering. She could hear all the horrid things those men and women were spewing on the sidewalk; thankful that her brother didn't seem to hear any that discriminatory garbage.

"What are they talking about?" he said while covering his ears.

"... It's nothing you should concern yourself with Ronin," Her tone was stiff, and Ronin couldn't help notice his sister's hand clench into a tight fist; her knuckles going white. Her facial expression hadn't changed at all, but he saw the small flash of disgust in her eyes.

 _Your body language says otherwise, sis._ He could tell what was pissing her off so much; it wasn't all that hard to figure out. He could see the small group of people on the sidewalk clearly; a Faunus hate group, if the signs they held were anything to go by.

 _The Faunus Need to be Put Down!_

 _Don't let these ANIMALS take our jobs!_

"Open Faunus Season Starts NOW!" could be heard from the stage they had just passed. The crowd was in an uproar, but all Ronin could think was _What the Fuck! Since when has Vale ever condoned these acts to be public?_ The mere thought of having to endure such protests and hostility at the home front was a bit nerve wracking, but this wasn't a thought, this was reality.

Yet as he and his family pulled away from the distasteful scene, no one noticed the lone figure just on the outskirts of the crowd, watching Ronin's retreating form with a grin. The bulky figure sneered with an unparalleled obnoxious air about him as he saw the winged faunus for what he was, considering the lining was shaken off key with the hasty retreat.

Cardin, Beacon's residential Faunus hater and bully could see the winged rat for what it really was, a filthy chicken.

The huntsmen in training turned to the lone figure, a somewhat accomplished smirk taking over his features. "What did I tell you, just like their brainless brothers, they always fly south for the winter." As he finished his HIGHLY inaccurate zoology lesson, the older man turned to his apprentice, who had approached him from behind ((maketh that what you will)). The only response the older man gave was an unamused look, and a bitch slap to Cardin's skull.

"You idiot!" The man seethed at the teen's stupidity. "There are no defining features that show he's a faunus!" Honestly, the man couldn't believe that Cardin was so idiotic at times; he had absolutely no proof that the boy was a faunus, just because he sped off didn't mean he was one of those beast. He rolled his eyes in disdain as Cardin groaned.

"But you're the one who said that there are always wolves in sheep's clothing; some more obvious than others." He winced as his hand brushed over his newly sported bump. "Didn't the cloak he was wearing seem off?" The older man quirked an eyebrow in response. "It looked like it was made of feathers Boss."

The older man, now dubbed Boss, stared at his follower in silent scrutiny. Maybe Cardin wasn't as useless as he believed him to be. He managed to find a cat faunus hiding with only a stupid bow at Beacon, but that was the only beast he managed to find that hid their disgusting nature. Yet the red headed idiot never fully caught on! He completely dismissed the article of clothing as an accessory; he would never understand how he missed the occasional bow twitch, OR THE FUCKING CAT EYES! That, and her noted attraction to fish based meals, mainly tuna.

The teen was beyond idiotic at times, but it seemed that he was finally learning how to identify the differences between man and beast. "At least you found us a rare catch." The bird faunus species as a whole wasn't rare, but a certain attribute was.

Wings.

 _At least we know he's a chicken. Now all we need are fries._

Apparently, the two had never heard of discretion. Even if they hadn't said such things aloud, their body language voiced their thoughts rather clearly. And Melissa Holy, Ronin's mother, was a master at reading body language; how else would she deal with two moody teenaged children? The man's hostility seemed to come off him in waves, and the young hunter with him screamed arrogance and ill intent.

 _They know!_

"Everybody get to the cars." Melissa's voice held a sense of urgency, and the rest of the family knew not to question it. Unfortunately, their hasty actions had caught the attention of the speaker from the demonstration, and he decided to see what the people had to say. They tried to keep a steady pace, but they hadn't noticed he was right behind them just as they reached the car.

"You sir!"

"OUM DAMN IT, DUDE! You nearly scared me to death!"

The preacher of hate and ignorance made no attempt at holding back his lunacy. "What say you to hunting down the feral beasts that dare destroy our great city?" The man's statement was met with a roaring applause from his own flock of ignorant sheep. "WHAT SAY YOU TO CLAIMING THEM AS THE TROPHIES TO BE MOUNTED, AS THEY WERE INTENDED TO BE?" The crowd was eagerly awaiting Ronin's response.

"Mounted? Bow chika bow wow." Jenna and Cecil didn't even attempt to hold back the laughter. Even Melissa couldn't hold back a smile at that response. "Would you pay me to film all of this 'mounting'?" Ronin couldn't keep a grin from spreading on his face.

Apparently, they all lacked a sense of humor, as one of them tried to throw a brick at Ronin. "Hey!" He shouted as he dodged the lethal projectile. "Who carries around a brick?" Another came flying towards his head, he ducked under it effortlessly. "I guess that answers my question." He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "Why the heck does everyone have a brick?"

"For reconstruction," someone in the crowd yelled. "Didn't you hear about the breach?"

"Breach?"

"A whole bunch of Grimm got into the city, and a lot of buildings sustained severe damages."

"WHAT! How did they even get in?" Ronin was shocked by this revelation. Vale was the best when it came to managing the Grimm, since it had the best hunter school on Remnant. To think that his home had been overrun, although briefly, by the mindless monsters was beyond him.

"Some White Fang scum let them loose from the old railways."

The White Fang. A misguided group of Faunas who have been treated the absolute worst to have conceived of forming a genocide terrorist group. _To think those people would try to destroy a city with-_

…

"Wait, that's why you people are so pissed?" Ronin asked with slight shock. It seemed that these people were just upset by the fact that the White Fang had been the cause of such an occurrence; not about the damages, or possible injured civilians. "Were there any casualties?"

"Thankfully, no, but it's obvious that they intended to kill us all! They tried to kill us with the very brethren they were spawned from!" The crowd was about to cheer for the moron's statement until-

"OR, it was a whole separate message all together." shouted Jenna from the car. Ronin's family was already in the car except for Ronin himself who knew what his sister was implying. The gathered crowd however did not catch on; most of them seemed baffled by the thought that the attack could have some other, deeper meaning.

"Let me ask you a question," Ronin interjected, 'What kingdom are we currently residing in?"

"Vale?" came the hesitant and confused mumbling from the crowd.

"And what is Vale best known for?"

The crowd mumbled amongst itself giving a few understandable answers, "Well, sea trade, shipping, etc."

"Yes, but what is the most important and most respectable thing about our kingdom?" The crowd seemed to have a mass epiphany.

"Beacon academy?"

"EXACTLY!" Ronin's grin was almost maniacal.

The boss knew what Ronin was trying to do, and attempted to prevent his views from poisoning the minds of the enlightened. "If you are referring to the same hunters, who allowed those beasts to nearly kill us all in the first place-"

"KILL US ALL? I just heard that there wasn't a single casualty from this breach-"

"And what do you even know about it? You had just asked what it was moments ago." The Boss' words caused a murmur to flow through the crowd; the Boss didn't really even know why they were answering the kid's questions.

"Sure, but that's why I'm better at discerning what they were act-"

"Hey, did everybody hear that?' Cardin took this as his time to interject, "The feathered freak thinks he's better than us." and with that statement, Cardin decided to prove he was right to his boss, and lunged at Ronin.

"Hey, get off of me mother deathstalker!" Ronin tried to push the red headed brute off of him, but in doing so, left Cardin with a gift.

"Oh, shit." The lining for his wings were in Cardin's hands. Ronin did his best to keep his feathers from ruffling in pain and surprise, it was all for naught.

"What I tell ya Boss? He's one of them!" Cardin's voice held an air of superiority and pride; the only emotion that shone in his boss' eyes was irritation.

 _Damn it you moron! We needed to know what we were dealing with!_

Realizing the crowd was on the verge of becoming a lynch mob, Ronin all but leaped through the back seat window, and yelled "Thanks for the friendly homecoming!"

* * *

" I think we're in the clear." Ronin stated in a relieved tone.

After the mob chased them for a few blocks, Cecil, Ronin's father, had lost them after a street light had turned red and incoming traffic had kept them from continuing the chase. No one expected their welcome party to come in the form of angry, racist pricks.

Now, after a nerve wracking one sided car chase, the family of four was now on the road to home.

Ronin, now feeling confident about the coast being clear, decided to read up on what had happened since his family had left Vale. Though he had to cover himself and his scroll from his parents so the light wouldn't affect his father's driving. They had stayed on the road for quite a bit since the incident at the docks had spread. Now it was nighttime and a mass resting period was in order after the day's events.

Now all that was left on Ronin's agenda was to find out more about the breach, and any recent updates on White Fang activities. He was surprised by a few of the things that had transpired during his vacation time. The rise in dust robberies, rallies for recruitment, all of it leading up to the piece de resistance, the Breach.

Apparently, it was a blood bath from the Grimm's side. Not one of them survived long enough to even piss themselves once they realized they were boned. And the number of hunters that attended was nothing to sneeze at either, all of those students from Beacon, and a few soldiers from Atlas had assisted them as well.

"Wow! And they thought the hunters were screw ups?" he said from under his wings.

Soon he came across the list of profiles of each hunter and huntress that had partaken in the grimm slaughter. The list was quite lengthy, giving all sorts of little details, profile pics, and-

…

…

…

 _Who are you?_

 _ **CRASH!**_

The last thing Ronin remembered was a pair of stunning silver eyes.

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **DA: And that was chapter two! If you guys like the fic, please feel free to leave a review so we know if you guys like it or not, and if there are any areas we need to work on. Anything else Maya?**

 **Maya?**

…

 **Well, she disappeared on me, so follow if you wish to continue. Bye!**


	3. Chapter 3: Hell

**A/N:**

 **DA: Well hot damn! You guys seem to be enjoying the story!**

 **Maya: Maybe we aren't awful writers after all DAvvy. THE ORACLE WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG!**

 **DA: For the last time, IT WAS A FORTUNE COOKIE!**

 **Maya: LIES. THE ORACLE WAS MERELY IN ITS DORMANT FORM. LIKE A POKEMON.**

 **DA: ANYWAY… we are now getting into the show's original namesake and finally including team RWBY! So hold on to your cookies and legs friends, here's chapter 3!**

 **Maya: WHOOP WHOOP! DAT'S ZA SOUND OF DA POLICE!**

 **Disclaimer: We do not own RWBY, or the rights to the reference of any real world people.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3:** _Hell_

It was an incident that no one ever thought they would witness during their lifetimes. Even Weiss couldn't hide her shock at this tragedy. The incident with the breach paled in comparison to what they had just witnessed.

Ruby said no… to a cookie.

It had been a small and quiet 'no thanks', but it echoed loud and clear through the rest of team RWBY's ears. Even newly appointed team animal companion Zwei seemed to grasp the severity of the situation; he could sense the disbelief radiating from the two legged ones.

It also didn't help that it was her mother's recipe for Ruby's favorite chocolate chip.

This was beyond terrifying to say the least. Ruby refusing her favorite baked good was like announcing that the world itself was prepared to collapse in on itself at any given moment.

"W-what did you say?" Yang asked in slight disbelief and horror.

"I said no thanks, Yang." Ruby repeated herself, in a tired tone.

"Ruby, are you alright?" Yang asked with deep concern.

"OF COURSE SHE'S NOT ALRIGHT! SHE TURNED DOWN A COOKIE!" Shouted Weiss in an attempt to snap her partner out of whatever funk she was in, whether that method was appropriate or not had yet to be seen. Apparently, not even Weiss' scream could elicit a reaction from Ruby; not even a flinch.

"Ok Weiss, let's not overreact." Blake interjected. The most level headed of the team as always, Blake tried to remain calm at the sudden instance of insanity. "Yang, just because she doesn't want it means something's wrong. She's probably just tired." Blake knew for a fact that was a complete lie, but Yang seemed to buy it; for now at least.

But Weiss wasn't fooled, "Oh come on, Belladonna, we all know that isn't true. Even when she lost her perfect win streak to Nora on her twelfth win, she still devoured two plates."

"That was different Weiss!" Ruby explained in a hostile tone. She hated that they were talking about her as if she wasn't there, it was annoying. All this fuss just because she didn't want a cookie? Was it really all that bad? Weiss was always telling her to slow down on the sweets anyway. Ruby sighed for a brief second, before continuing in a more subdued tone. "And besides, Blake is right," she said as she jumped down from her bunk, "just because I turned down one cookie doesn't mean that there's something wrong."

As she tried to pass her sister to exit the room, Yang quickly snatched her headphones and music player she was wearing.

"YANG! GIVE ME BACK MY HEAD PHONES!"

But it was too late. Yang had already heard the lyrics, and knew instantly that her fears were justified. She dropped the headphones in utter shock.

" _The Ghost of You!"_ she said in a quiet yet shocked tone.

"AND I'LL MAKE A GHOST OUT OF YOU IF YOU DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE, XIAO LONG!" Ruby screamed as she left her dorm with Crescent Rose in hand. Silence consumed the dorm.

* * *

"What the heck just happened?" asked a stunned heiress who was still processing what had transpired with their leader a few minutes ago. "What's 'The Ghost of You'?"

Yang had become a bit pale, and rightfully so. Ruby only ever listened to that song whenever she was in an emotional rut, usually on the border of depressed and hostile. "The Ghost of You is a song from a band called 'My Chemical Romance'."

Blake's ears perked up in recognition of the name. "I've heard of them before! They were really popular amongst faunus due to most of their songs focusing around depression and anger." To think that _Ruby Rose_ would ever listen to a band like that was beyond any one of them to conceive.

"Dust damn it, I should have noticed once she started reading her Grimm studies book over her new weapons magazine, that something was wrong!" Yang was close to yanking at her own hair in frustration.

"I thought that was rather strange, but I thought she took what I said about proper technique to heart."

"And you're supposed to be her partner? Look, even after that **disturbing** moment we just witnessed, I still think we need to let her be. I'm sure she'll come around on her own." Blake stated calmly, getting her copy of Ninja's of Love from underneath her bunk. "If she wants to talk about it she will, but only when she's ready. We shouldn't try and force it out of her just yet." She flipped to her bookmarked page, and began reading; leaving the other two to endure the silence. "Besides, what can she do after we already went on a mission?"

* * *

"I want another mission!" Ruby demanded as she barged into Ozpin's office.

Ozpin and Glynda both looked up at the prodigy, clearly surprised that she would just barge in. "Hello to you too, Ms. Rose." Glynda greeted, more shocked than irritated with the huntress in training. She quickly turned back to the scroll on Ozpin's desk, "We'll talk when you arrive." She appeared to tap the screen, ending the call with whoever they were conversing with, before she and the headmaster gave Ruby their full attention.

 _Oh crap! Did I just interrupt Professor Ozpin and Ms. Goodwitch?_

"Sorry! I probably should have knocked first." she said with a sheepish laugh. "I hope I didn't interrupt something important..."

"Not at all." _We should be thanking you for the interruption_. The call that had just ended was not a particularly friendly, 'got home safely' call from their daughter. Azure decided to jump ship in Vale instead of taking the full ride to Beacon; despite her protest, Ozpin had sent a personal airship to her and Glynda's home. She had not been happy about being "forced" into the aircraft and shipped off like a "FedEx package"; whatever that meant, the analogy escaped Ozpin and Glynda.

Ruby decided to take a breath before she angered the man who allowed her to skip 2 years ahead and study at a highly advanced school after having gotten arrested. _Do not insult him Ruby, you owe a lot to him._ _And what did you do last week? You failed them, and your team!_

"Miss Rose?" Ozpin could tell that the young huntress was troubled; having a surrogate daughter had taught him a few things. "You're troubled by the status of your last mission aren't you?" he decided to get to the heart of the matter. Ruby flinched ever so slightly.

"It was pretty obvious, wasn't it?" Her head drooped downward; an air of defeat surrounding her.

"There's no reason to feel ashamed about how the mission turned out, Ruby. Your mission was to eliminate the Grimm, and that's what you did. As for the matter of the White Fang, well… that was an added bonus."

"Added bonus? They breached Vale, and flooded a section of the city with Grimm! How was-,"

This was where Glynda decided to interject. "We have reason to believe that your actions may have prevented larger scale catastrophes, as well as cut down on the number of injuries sustained by the civilians." Her words did little to reassure Ruby that she had done the best she could.

"Let me ask you something Ruby, what trouble did you run into before you even had the mission?"

"Um, it was intended for... third... years?" She answered unsurely. She didn't really know where the headmaster was going with that question... until she realized the gap in experience.

 _This was intended for THIRD YEAR students! And that was for just the Grimm, which we took care of!_

With this sudden realization in hand, Ozpin decided to make sure they were on the same page. "You completed your mission flawlessly; you and your team can't be held responsible for anything that occurred outside of that." He took a quick sip of his coffee. "Do you understand now?"

"I think I get it." Ruby's mood seemed to brighten slightly; relieved that the mission hadn't gone as badly as she thought. But she had snapped on her team mates, her friends, and all they had wanted to do was make sure she was okay. She felt her heart sink; she couldn't back to the dorm now, not after that outburst. "But… Would it still be possible for me to take another mission? A solo one?" She silently pleaded with the universe to grant her this one request.

"Unfortunately," _Dust dammit_. "We don't have anything particularly," Ozpin paused, "Exciting available." An ingenious plan popped into Ozpin's head. "But there is a certain… retrieval mission that could be taken currently."

Ruby's head tilted slightly. "Retrieval?"

* * *

"Ugh. Damn you Ozpin." Azure mumbled to herself as she shoved her scroll into her pocket, wandering the streets of Vale. The man had sent a ragtag team of second year students via airship to take her to Beacon, and she had been forced to accompany them back, or be tazed by the giant of the group.

Her response when the baton like weapon had crackled to life had been something akin to 'don't taze me bro!'

But as the airship was reaching Vale, Azure decided to flee ship mid-flight. Luckily she managed to break her fall with her aura.

Long story short, those kids got a lesson in pissing off a Goodwitch, **YOU DON'T!**

 _Well I haven't been to the city in a few years, might as well see what's new._

The last time Azurine had visited Vale was to be introduced to her "uncles" so to speak. She had already met them before, but that time was just for appearances. As if anyone would be able to contemplate how they knew each other before hand.

"No… NO!" Azure had found her first stop, but wished she hadn't. She had arrived at the shop formerly known as 'Tukson's Booktrade', her favorite bookstore. The last time she was in Vale, the store was rather popular. Now it was abandoned!

"Excuse me?" Azure decided to ask a local what had happened, so she found the old man that was FREAKING EVERYWHERE! _God, how creepy can you get?_ "Do you know what happened to Tuksons's Booktrade? I was hoping to pick up something he was holding for me."

A sad look crossed the elder's face before he responded, "I'm very sorry miss, but Tukson passed away weeks ago."

 _Damn it! I told him not to go to the rally!_

"Well, thanks anyway sir."

"Wait! Azure, take this!" The old man gave her a wrapped package that had, 'For Azure' written on the top. It was relatively small to the average package, so it was probably the book Tukson was holding for her.

"How do you know my name?" She asked, a tad suspicious.

"Tukson left a note with the package. It said that you would be wearing a purple cloak, and to only give it to you, only if you were wearing the cloak."

 _Seriously? Why all the secrecy for a book? And seriously? Again... Just because of the 'nightshade' cloak?_

"Well, thanks," She took the package from the old man's 's death had been unexpected, but she wouldn't dwell on it; the book store owner had been through hell and back, she knew the afterlife wouldn't be too much for him to handle.

As the old man left the front of the store, Azure continued her self-tour of the city she hadn't set foot in for the past three years. Every sight brought on a feeling of nostalgia for her; memories of her time spent here when she was a child seemed to surface with each thing she recognized. The cafe she had her first coffee with Ozpin and Oobleck, she only remembered that day because it had been her very first caffeine induced high, and she had been hooked on it ever since.

Though she did learn the definition of moderation since that day.

Then there was the time she went to the museum with professor Port, since he was holding a lecture there; Oobleck was out sick so he was in charge of watching Azure that day. He had taken her to learn about the various types of Grimm, telling her the stories of his youth as they went; Azure seemed to be the only child that listened intently his tales. Hell, she was the only kid there, let alone the fact that she was the only person who managed to stay awake for the entirety of his lectures; she even took notes, and she was only seven.

Though throughout her tour, she couldn't stop thinking about the reasons she stayed away from the city; well, Beacon in particular. Sure she loved the city, but there was always the possibility of running into-

"LOOK OUT!"

 _ **BAM!**_

The first thing Azure noticed was a blur of grey, and suddenly the wind had been knocked out of her, and she found herself flat on her back.

 _OW, God damn it! What was that, a freight train?_ The groan of pain that emitted from the slightly heavy mass on her torso made her think otherwise.

"Gah, well that sucked ass." said the body that was easing itself off of her. "Sorry, I was trying a new method of travel with my weapon." Azure was confused by that statement until she saw the old cane that was broken in two on the ground.

"Your weapon… is a crappy cane?" she asked, slightly disappointed by the fact that someone would even think that was an effective weapon. As she kicks up off the ground, the skater explained.

"Oh no, not that, that was just an experiment in skateboarding with hooks. I probably would have had a better time using my scarf."

 _Her scarf?_ Then she got a better look at the article in mention and a **HUGE** grin spread across her face. "Is that a black dust infused veil?" She asked in barely contained excitement. Not many people were ballsy enough to attempt to use black dust in combat, especially in a weapon. Black dust in itself was considered the most dangerous dust of all, given its unique ability to remove consciousness, at a faster rate than chloroform. Anyone who used it as a weapon, and was still walking, was a certified bad ass in Azure's eyes.

The other girl quirked an eyebrow in surprise. "Yeah," She adjusted the cloth around her neck. "You're pretty observant; most people just think it's a fashion statement."

"But that was the intended misconception, wasn't it?" Azure could see the slight smirk forming on the other teen's face.

"Smart too. Though I bet you speak from experience, considering the oh-so subtle gloves of death." Now Azure was the one sporting a smirk at her new acquaintance.

"Touché."

"To-what?"

"Never mind. Goodwitch, Azurine Goodwitch."

"Ethra. Ethra Vale."

"Vale? Like the kingdom we're currently standing in?"

"How about the kingdom we're sitting in, because my legs are sore right now." Azure could tell that she was subtly trying to change the topic, so she played along; they had only just met, so she didn't have any means to pry.

"Sure, there's this awesome cafe that I have been dying to visit again. How about we rest there?" _Please accept the invitation._

"Why not?" Ethra shrugged. "Lead the way."

 _Operation waste more time has begun._

* * *

"What do you mean she jumped?!" Exclaimed a confused and worried Ruby. Currently, Ruby was in the infirmary with the team that had been tasked to escort a certain huntress back to Beacon.

Coco, team leader of team CFVY, sighed in irritation, having to repeat herself to yet another person about the fact that they couldn't keep one girl in an airship. "I'm saying, we were on our way back to Beacon, when all of a sudden, Yatsuhashi collapsed, and while we went to check on him, she leapt from the ship, and we didn't see where she landed."

"What happened to Yatsuhashi though?"

"Apparently, she managed to smuggle some black dust along for the ride." Fox interjected, sensing Coco's slowly growing irritation. He understood completely, after all, they had been bested by some random teenage girl; he was just a tad bit calmer, along with a knocked out Yatsuhashi.

"But how did she get off the ship in the first place? We went through twelve different security checks just to bring her on board."

As Ruby was about to ask another question, Yatsuhashi rolled over on his cot during his dust induced sleep.

 _Wait a minute…_

Ruby made her way to the unconscious giant, quickly discerning the method of dispersion. The grey skin tone was not natural for Yatsuhashi, but that was normal for skin to look as such when exposed to black dust. What had caught Ruby's eye was the area of which the grey covered.

It was over his entire neck.

"Did she happen to have any form of cloth on her, preferably lose pieces?" Ruby, being the weapon nerd she is, had a pretty good idea about how she smuggled it on board.

As Ruby asked this question, Velvet walked in, knowing the answer to the million lien question. "Ya, she had a scarf! It was gray and black, but that couldn't be possible if it had black dust."

"Actually, Weiss had told me that people are able to resist the effects of black dust through a few methods, one of which was natural resistance." Ruby had an extensive lecture on the matter after she had spilled the charges Weiss had for her sword, Myrtenaster. She hadn't caught everything, due to the fact that Weiss talked just a _bit_ too fast for her taste, but she was glad that the bits and pieces she picked up were useful in this situation. "If a person has been exposed to it for a long time the body just kinda learns how to ignore the effects."

Needless to say, the members of team CFVY were shocked by this revelation. After all, they hadn't expected any of this to transpire. Let alone be bested by some random teenage girl that they had no prior knowledge about.

But Ruby had gotten a brief profile on who they had picked up. Her name was _Ethra Vale_ , she was fifteen, and eligible to enroll in Beacon, so Ozpin had sent for her as a way for her to make a new friend; one that could better relate to her, as well as acquire another advanced student with incredible potential.

But of course, the professor also had his daughter to worry about, as she decided to take a detour, much like Ethra had by the looks of it. He had expected such a stunt to be performed by Azure, but it had been quite the surprise to find that Ethra had "flown the coop" so to speak. So as Glynda was giving Ruby details about Ethra, he decided to let her know of Azure's details, in case she ran into either of them; Azure would have no problem getting to the school, but Ethra might.

Though it seems, for Ruby, fate wasn't as kind as it should have been for the crimson reaper. _Welp, it wouldn't be fun without a challenge._ So Ruby decided to just go out around the town, and see if she would find one or the other, if luck was on her side that is. From what she'd been told those girls were beyond crafty, and the headmaster considered them prodigies, but so was Ruby; if anyone could find them, she could.

She hoped.

She would.

She- was about to lose her lunch.

* * *

"Wait! You jumped too?" Azure had asked her shocked.

"Hell yeah. Those guys were beyond boring," Ethra paused. "Except that rabbit faunus. She seemed nice enough, just quiet." She took a quick sip of her mint tea, the crisp flavor mentally shocking her in slight surprise.

"I nearly got tazed, brutish."

"Why did you jump then?"

Azure took a moment to finish her sixteenth coffee of the day; she would have to come here more often. "Way too many auras in one place for me."

"What?" Ethra had no idea what she was talking about, and the look on her face told Azure as such.

"Let me explain," She propped her head up on her hand. "My aura is a little different from everyone else's. You see, I can kind of sense people's auras, but only people I've been around for long periods of time. My aura forms a connection of sorts with others, so it's like I've imprinted on a person." At Ethra's blank look, she sat up to grab a few of the cups she had earlier. Placing them all in a circle, with one in the middle. "Like this, that cup in the center," She gestured to said cup, "That's my aura." She pushed another cup closer to it. "This is another person's aura, both are different, and both can be used in a multitude of ways." Seeing a spark of recognition in Ethra's eyes, Azure learned two things: she needed to keep her as a friend, and when the initiation at Beacon arrives, she needed her to be her partner.

"Keep going." Ethra leaned forward in her seat with obvious interest.

"But, our auras react to things differently." She continued. "Say you were injured, your aura would heal you correct?" Ethra nodded. "Well someone else's may react in a such a way as to prevent further harm instead of healing them. It takes a long time," She pushed the two cups closer. "But my aura can scan others, and once it does I can find that aura signature virtually anywhere so long as a person is in range."

Ethra's eyes widened in shock. "Really?"

"Mmhm," Azure hummed in confirmation. "There's a set-back to it though." She pushed the all the cups closer to the one in the center, creating a cluster. "Having multiple foreign auras to decipher and break down at once takes a toll on my physical state."

"What do you mean?"

"It feels like the start of a stomach ache, uncomfortable but you bear with it anyway. Then it just branches out from there. Nausea, headaches, things like that. Worst case scenario, I'll go into a coma and possibly cardiac arrest." She shrugged, ignoring Ethra's look of horror. "But once my aura identifies another," She pushed one of the cups away from the center. "It progressively becomes easier to sort out the others. One by one," She pushed the others outwards as well. "I'm able to tell the difference between each one, no matter how small it may be."

"Wait, so are you okay around me?"

"That actually brings up another bit about my struggles, certain semblances don't feel as overwhelming as others, but since there are so many different ones I don't really know which ones I can adapt to quickly. Though certain types seem to be easier, such as sedate ones such as... What is your semblance?" She asked realizing she never got to know that fact.

"Intangibility." To back up her statement, due to the confused look on Azure's face, she made her hand phase through her mug of tea.

"So you're a living ghost. Awesome. Your semblance doesn't feel as smothering to me. It's like it's there, but just out of bounds of my aura." She sighed in relief. "Less trouble for me. Anyways," she pushed the cups off the side of the table, and into the awaiting trashcan. "My semblance helps tone things down a bit too."

"The whole sensing connection thing isn't your semblance?"

"No, that's just how my aura works. My semblance is much less complicated." She placed a handful of lien on the table, before standing and gesturing for Ethra to follow. "I'll show you, just not here. Too many damages to pay for if I did."

* * *

 _W-Well, it's a good thing I'm used to r-red._

Ruby had seen the results of a few bloody battles already, mostly with the Grimm and some members of the White Fang, but she was not prepared for the scene she saw before her. Never in her life had she seen so much _red._

Not even Uncle Qrow would walk away unfazed from this.

 _I may not know much about car crashes, but I know they don't usually involve this much... Gore._

An overpowering metallic stench filled her nostrils with every breath she took, and her stomach lurched when she examined the source. Eight bodies all appeared to be those of middle aged men, lay bloody and mutilated to a sickening degree. The pavement below her feet was splattered with the liquid of life, leaving a distinctive tightness in the pit of her stomach. The first body she laid eyes on was quite the gruesome sight, and she nearly lost her lunch.

This corpse was missing a very noticeable feature: **his head**. Blood was still gushing from the man's severed neck, and pieces of bone and torn veins protruded from area. It seemed like something out of a horror movie, except those were fake, and this was definitely real; no matter how much she wished it weren't. Not to mention that what remained of what she assumed was his head was nothing but a crimson pulp. Even the bone appeared to be crushed to an almost dust like substance.

She willed herself to step over the corpse, despite the steadily building bile rising in the back of her throat. She swallowed. As a huntress, even if she was still in training, she had to investigate to make sure whoever or _whatever_ had done this wasn't a threat to any civilians that may travel in this direction. She headed towards the vehicle, watching as the smoke from the engine rose into the air. She approached it cautiously, careful of the few bodies that had been torn apart to an extensive degree; those would be near impossible to identify.

The legs dangling from underneath the hood of the vehicle stopped her in her tracks. The sight was… gruesome to put it mildly. The flesh she could see appeared to be charred and melting in some places. The second body she found smelled worse than it looked. Well, she couldn't see the entirety of the body, but the smell of burned flesh was rather prominent.

Ruby backed away from the sight. She was shaking now and a sudden realization hit here.

Why hadn't she contacted the authorities yet? Ozpin, the police, _somebody_ that could handle this dust dammit!

So she made the smart decision and left the bloodbath, but just as she was about to leave to report the incident, a small weak voice cried out.

" _Help me…"_

Ruby's head turned at break neck speed, searching for the owner of the voice. She had to save any survivors she came across; though this survivor was most likely not going to make it. Ruby had found the survivor, and she almost screamed. The man in question was being hung precariously from a tree.

By his small intestines. The white of his eyes bulged, and his lower body seemed to be caked in blood. He was struggling, to breathe, taking small labored breaths, with the false hope that he would live through his ordeal.

 _How is he still alive!?_ That was the first thought that ran through her mind. The second was to finally allow nature to take its course, and she found herself vomiting at the sight. She was not mentally prepared for something like this, she was still a kid after all, and no kid should have to witness something so brutal. _Maybe it's a good thing the others didn't follow me… Or eat those cookies._

As soon as the life left the hanged man's eyes, she used her semblance and ran out of there. Once she was a good distance away, she pulled out her scroll, and dialed the police.

"This is the VPD, what's your emer-"

"Send every car you have, there was a massacre!" Ruby couldn't keep the absolute horror out of her voice as she told the operator what she found. "Ma'am calm down, where are you?"

Only one word came to mind at that question: _HELL!_

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **DA: Finally finished with chapter three.**

 **Maya: Well... That was a thing. XD**

 **DA: You have some issues Maya. For the record, the gory scene that was written was all Maya's work, all hers.**

 **Maya: HEY. This is what happens when you watch Corpse Party. Shit gets fucked up. :3**

 **DA: Also, we know that our portrayal of Ruby wasn't quite as accurate as some would say, but we see it as a good representation of how she would have taken all that happened.**

 **Maya: So don't bitch about it. :p**

 **DA: Smooth Maya, real smooth. Also the FedEx bit was just… an inside joke.**

 **Maya: ... Or was it?**

 **DA: SILENCE! Anyway, until next chapter, bye!**

 **Maya: I STILL WANT MY COOKIES DAMMIT.**


	4. Chapter 4: Damned

**A/N:**

 **DA: Well, this story is progressing nicely, wouldn't you say Maya?**

 **Maya: Hell yeah. We dun guuud. =W=**

 **DA: Well, we are far from over, so it's more like we are DOING good.**

 **Maya: Shut up. You ruined a perfectly guuud line.**

 **DA:*rolls eyes* Anyway… Since the last chapter, the story has blown up!**

 **Plus as of the last chapter, a rather talented artist was kind enough to make us a cover.**

 **Maya: THAT WOULD BE ME. BOW YOU FOOLS. PRAISE YOUR FALLEN GODDESS. MWUHAHAHAHAHA! I need help. OwO**

 **DA: No you don't. You need more acid. Keep those stories a flowen.**

 **Maya: ... Just do the disclaimer.**

 **Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to RWBY or any referenced real life parallels.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4:** _Damned_

 _Ringing._

 _Blood._

 _Smoke._

 _ **That sadistic FUCKER'S smile.**_

 _ **Stab.**_

 _ **STAB.**_

 _ **AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**_

"JENNA-AH, SHIT!" Ronin screamed as he woke from his horrific nightmare.

Having no prior knowledge as to what had transpired Ronin shot straight up, having been sleeping on what felt to be a bed, and instantly regretting the action. Unbeknownst to him, he had undergone surgery, and was in the midst of recovering from what could be considered mutilation or torture. Whatever pain medication he was put on was evidently wearing off, leaving him with the oh-so fun surprise of crippling pain.

In an attempt to take his mind off his agonizing revelation, the patient lied back down before the pain could punish him further for his hysterical actions. Once the pain had receded, he took a few fearful breaths, weary of the possibility of it causing anymore unwanted pain. He steadied his breathing as best as he could, calming his once frantically beating heart in the process.

As his heart slowed to the point where he couldn't hear it like an evil drum resounding in his ears, he tried to take in his surroundings. This most certainly wasn't a hospital, if the lack of a heart monitor or any other medical equipment was anything to go by. The closest thing to this dump being in any relation to a hospital was the gown he was wearing. That and the IV drip protruding from his forearm.

He would've liked to explore this place a bit more, but the pain coursing through his limbs was insistent on keeping him in this pretty uncomfortable bed. Thus he was stuck staring at the ceiling, immobile and in pain.

 _Wait… can I?_

He arched his back as much as he could without causing the pain to flare back up. Once he was certain his back was raised high enough, he tried to spread his smothered wings.

And what he found made him forget all his pain.

 _Oh, dear Oum!_

As a winged faunus, his wings were always white. They were always that color since he was born. Sure, he dyed them from time to time, but this was not dye that had permanently stained his wings…

 **It was blood.**

That's what jogged his hazy memory. He remembers everything up until the events from the past day, but this cleared some of it up. Then a whole new pain came to him. One that made his heart clench and tears spring into his eyes; his skin paling until he was almost ghost white.

The events from the prior night had fled back to him in a rush.

His family was in a car crash, but it wasn't an accident. He could remember one of the men asking, "was it the right car?" and horror striking his face with realization.

They had been hunted like animals.

He remembered thinking that it was his fault, that they would have been fine if he had hidden his wings better. He had just wanted to go home with his family, and enjoy sleeping in his own bed after being away for so long.

But those **monsters** had other plans.

The horrific scenes that had played out that evening would forever be etched into his mind. The memories seemed to play over and over again in his head, and no matter how much he willed it to stop, the only thing he could see was **him.**

 _ **That damned Sadist!**_

 _ **He**_ _took me._ _ **He**_ _kept me alive just for shits and gig- Wait... He would have left me in pain not patch me up._

There were medical bandages wrapped around his torso and upper arms, and he was pretty sure that he had a few band aids on his face too. One quest rang through his mind loud and clear.

Where was he, and how did he get here? Whatever here was anyway. The room he was in seemed... Dark and foreboding, well that would've been the case if he were human. Thanks to his faunus traits, seeing in the darkness wasn't an issue. The room he was in was oddly cozy. The bed he had slipped out of ever so slowly was rather classy.

 _Is this a hotel?_ He couldn't help but wonder. He went to a dresser to see if they had left any clothes; he was not keen on walking around in a nightgown, it wasn't manly. Luckily, the first drawer he opened held a fresh new outfit. Although there was something off about it. It was mostly white with black trimmings, and it had this weird symbol on the heart.

A red beast with three claw marks running over it.

 _Where have I seen this before?_

Then something clicked in his mind. He _really_ hoped this was not what he thought it was; maybe this was just some unfunny joke. Yet it was not to be, for that symbol stood for one particular group that was infamous to all of Remnant.

The White Fang.

 _Oh, shit!_

As the realization hit him, so did the door hitting the wall. A peculiar sight had stepped in from the door that was puzzling Ronin. A petite woman had stepped into the room. She was dressed in what appeared to be a tailcoat. She had quite the natural appearance itself, with brown and pink eyes and hair. But what really puzzled him was that he thought he was with the faunus group, and she was obviously human from what he could see.

Ronin was beyond confused at this point; especially when he thought the woman's eyes switched places, even if it had only been for a split second.

"Um, hi?"

The woman hadn't realized he was up yet until he spoke. Once he did, she turned to him and a shit-eating smirk crossed her face.

"Who are you?"

She didn't respond. All she did was pull out a scroll, and started typing. He was about to ask again until she held the scroll up in his face.

 _Neo._ That was all the screen read. Nothing more, nothing less. Not even a cute smiley face for a somewhat friendly introduction. It took Ronin a moment to realize it was her name.

"Oh! Well, Neo, could you maybe tell me where I am?" Ronin watched as she went to type something once again.

 _To help obviously._

"What? Help with what?" He had a few guesses but he wanted to make sure before he made an ass of himself.

 _Your brutality could be useful to us, Ronin Holy._

"You got my name off of my scroll didn't you?" He knew that she, or whoever was in charge, was going to use psychological tricks to recruit him. "And what do you mean by my 'brutality'?"

A look of intrigue flashed across Neo's features. _Do you really not know what you've done?_ She quirked a perfectly arched pink eyebrow.

"Honestly, I'm more interested in what has been done to me, because it feels like my skin was hung on a carpet of tacks."

A look of realization crossed Neo's face, and she grabbed something from her pocket. She quickly tossed it to Ronin.

"Morphine, thank Oum." Ronin quickly unscrewed the pill bottle, and downed two pills as instructed on the bottle.

 _You're welcome by the way._ Ronin nodded to her in belated thanks. At least she had a smiley next to her message this time. She didn't really seem all that bothered, that smirk was still on her face after all.

 _Now about the brutality._ Then her scroll buzzed, and she responded with what he assumed was irritation. _Crap, hold that thought. This'll take a moment._ Ronin watched her as she left the room. He was tempted to follow but just as the thought came to him he heard a quiet click.

She had locked him in here.

Oh well, at least he was comfortable here. He couldn't complain, and there was no way he'd be able to break the lock without upsetting his injuries; morphine or no morphine. So until another person, possibly ice-cream themed, came to check on him he might as well get a better look at the extent of his injuries. So he went to what he assumed was a bathroom in the room, to use the mirror.

And what he saw was horrifying.

Dr. Sadist didn't hold back when he tortured Ronin, that much was evident. Thankfully, someone had left the medical report on the bathroom counter. The injuries sustained included his wings having been cut off; made evident by the fact that they were red now, multiple lacerations to his torso and arms, due to having been wrapped in- _BARBED WIRE!?_

The memory that had surfaced in that moment was terrifying.

Then there was the mention of his knives-REMOVED FROM HIS SKULL?!

He immediately looked into the mirror to see if it was true, but there were no scars where there should have been.

But what he found instead was… unbelievable.

His eye's had changed color entirely. Instead of the normal brown iris, white background, and black pupils, they were all together new eyes. The iris became red, the sclera became black and his pupils were white.

 _Holy fuck!_

This was bizarre. Never in his life had Ronin's eyes changed, and even if they had he never noticed. Just what the hell had happened? Did this have something to do with that 'brutality' Neo had spoken of?

" **Ronin Holy, please come to the security room immediately! Maverick requests your presence!"**

 _Jeez! Did they intend to break ear drums with that?_ He was snapped out his idle thoughts when Neo knocked on the door frame. She gestured for him to follow her, and with a quick glance back to his new eyes, he joined her as she sauntered out of the room.

The new clothes felt weird on him. He was never one for uniforms, mostly because they never took into account for the wings. But these had been pre-made for such appendages. It was kind of creepy, like a weird gift from a yandere girlfriend. At least with only faunus around, he didn't have to wear his wings cloak fashion; he found that leaving them exposed was much more comfortable.

He was right about one thing so far, this was a hotel. Or at least was made to act as one. There were multiple White Fang members relaxing throughout the halls; some talking, standing around with a drink, and even playing poker.

"This is a white fang hideout?"

Neo held her scroll up over her shoulder, turning it to him. _No, this where we bring some of the more disturbed members to recuperate after a traumatic incident._

 _I guess what happened to me could be considered 'traumatic',_ he thought to himself as he passed an area with an indoor pool. "How did you come across this place, anyway?"

 _It belongs to my boss._

It was then that Ronin noticed another activity the white fang grunts were participating in. A brawl. He yelped when Neo jumped clear above his head, giving the chair that had been coming straight towards them a clear path to his skull. Luckily he ducked underneath it, and a rather loud crunch emitted from behind him. He turned and gulped at the sight. One of the chair legs had gotten stuck in the wall, and several cracks ran up the wall from the impact. He turned back to an unfazed Neo, who had continued her stride towards the security room. _Hm… let's test this 'brutality she was talking about._ He didn't know why he came up with this particular idea, but it felt right. So being the brash guy he was, he took the chair that had nearly killed him, and threw it back.

Except this time it made contact with a body. He smirked in satisfaction. He had a feeling that this would be fun, especially when the guy he hit seemed to brush off his attack. The brute turned to him slowly, and he was seething in what he thought was anger; it was hard to tell since he was wearing a mask. The brute looked down at the 5'9 bird boy and thought of only one word. Chicken nuggets. The word that came to Ronin's mind was bear bitch.

The brute tried to slam his fist down on Ronin, but Ronin merely stepped to the left and kicked out his right leg. As the nameless brute stumbled forward, Ronin brought his fist back, and shot it up towards his opponent's jaw with enough force to send him flying a few inches and crashing into a few other fang grunts.

 _That felt good. Though I can't say he feels the same way._ Poor brute was in a daze now, and the other members that had been pinned underneath his bulky form seemed to be struggling for much needed oxygen. Ronin didn't pay attention to them though, he was more focused on the satisfaction of finally getting to fight after so long, that and he had to catch up to Neo.

Who was patiently waiting by the next door to their destination with an amused look on her face. As Ronin finally caught up to her, she showed a message on her scroll to him. _Had a little fun without me, I see._ Ronin chuckled in embarrassment. _Leave the idiots alone Ronin, they don't need any more help receiving brain damage._ She gave him a small smile and continued on to a room at the end of the hall.

There was a plaque that read _S.R._ on the door. _Well lets meet the eyes of this bizarre haven._

* * *

*Buzz*

"Come in."

The door slid open, and the two from outside her domain had entered. Gamma rarely let anyone enter unless she deemed them fit for her abode, or her boss told her to. And it was the latter.

"Welcome, please leave your shoes over by the door, and DON'T TOUCH THE COMPUTERS NEO!" she all but screamed at the desert themed psycho who intended to touch at least one of the computers before she left. The one time she left Neo without supervision in her cave of technological wonders had ended horribly.

That damn umbrella wielding midget had downloaded the worst thing the cybernetic world had to offer on every single one of her monitors.

 _Flappy. Nevermore._

Gamma had simply howled in sorrow for the entire evening to cease the urge to murder her associate.

Hopefully, the new guy wasn't anything like that pink monster; one Neo was enough for the Rottweiler faunus. Hence why she started growling when Ronin placed a hand on one of the monitors closest to the door.

"Play nice, Gamma." said another voice, one that came from near the back of the rather large security room. The serious gruff voice had come from what smelled like a bull faunus. Gamma stopped her growling almost instantly, and had to grit her teeth to keep from pouncing on Neo, who was holding up her scroll with a smirk.

 _Good puppy._

"...I fucking hate you woman." She seethed with a glare before turning back to her monitors. "You better not have made an impression on devil boy over there." She pointed her thumb at Ronin who recoiled at the term. She ignored his offended look and settled on shifting through multiple dust shop security cameras instead.

Hacking was so much fun.

A certain bull faunus passed her seat in the middle of the room before advancing towards Pinky and the Devil.

"So, you seem to have made yourself acquainted with a few of our members." He said as he pointed at a monitor of the hall where a currently unconscious bear brute was suffocating two other grunts. There were a few others trying to move the guy off the poor dying saps beneath him; they weren't making much progress.

Gamma snickered at the sight. It was about time someone taught Oso a lesson. After his unauthorized attempt at killing the Schnee heiress on the train, he has been considered a 'hero' amongst the other members of the white fang. In her opinion he was just an idiotic underling who would make a better wrestler than an organized criminal. If he was smarter than the average bear, he would have tied her up, and saved her for a demonstration.

If she were a sicko like the others that is; Gamma wasn't one for killing humans. Grimm? Sure. Humans? ... Depends. Were they assholes to other humans? Or just faunus? Perhaps both? It was all a matter of what a person had done, not who they were, at least in Gamma's eyes; as far as she knew, that Schnee girl hadn't directly hurt a fellow faunus. That was enough for her not to completely hate her.

She didn't exactly support their cause, Gamma wouldn't either if she hadn't been born into the fang. She was stuck here at the moment, but she'd leave this place someday; hacking wasn't as much fun when all she had to do was tap into a few measly security feeds.

She shook her "traitorous" thoughts away once Adam began to speak. "Guess we were right to keep those knives off of you."

"YOU HAVE MY KNIVES?" The look of anger and worry that shot across Ronin's face shocked Gamma. Never in her life had she seen a person look so... Intimidating.

Ronin's pupils had contracted to the size of pine needles, and his fist had been clenched so tightly that his knuckles were going white. The only word she could think of to describe him then was feral. Gamma felt quite relieved by the fact he didn't have those knives now, she wasn't ready to die just yet; she had too many governmental compounds left to hack on her bucket list.

"I swear if you so much as SCRATCH either of them-" he stopped himself mid threat as the room suddenly started getting brighter. He attempted to shield his eyes, but the light only grew brighter and stronger.

Gamma could only see white for a few moments before the light finally dimmed to a small glow. _What the hell was that?_ She got her answer, along with everyone else in the room, when they saw Ronin again.

His hands and wings were... _Shining._ It was the purest white Gamma had ever seen aside from her own canines.

Though the most surprised of the group appeared to be Ronin himself. He examined his hands, turning them at every possible angle, nearly blinding himself at one point. He reminded Gamma of a child who'd just gotten a new and amazing toy; mystified with awe.

"And they said I wasn't very bright. Now I can prove them wrong." He said with an amused grin.

"Well, with that statement," Gamma started as she rubbed her eyes, blinking against the blue dots in her vision. "I for one am still debating whether you should be considered 'bright'."

"I was joking. Though this is an interesting development to say the least." Ronin said as the light on his hands and appendages began to fade completely. "Awe... It was really pretty too." He mumbled with a pout.

 _Really? Pretty?_ Gamma rolled her eyes at the white haired boy. Even she could think of a better word to describe the light, but out of every word in this world he chose _pretty._

Some guys just didn't make any sense to poor Gamma. "I know that look, rotty. Don't judge me. I'm a bird faunus. It's a thing okay?" He said with a huff. Gamma didn't care that he called her rotty; she had been called much more offensive names over the years. She was actually quite comfortable with the name; it was better than having him call her puppy like Neo. She'd have to kill him then, and she didn't feel like wasting precious time with something so tedious.

 _At least he doesn't mark his territory like SOME faunus I know._ Neo typed on a monitor.

Gamma turned away with a blush. "That was one time!" She erased the message from her own monitor. "AND WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT TOUCHING MY MONITORS!?"

"ENOUGH!" The bull faunus shouted to the bickering group. Gamma's ears flattened against her head, Ronin stopped laughing, and Neo lost her seemingly permanent smirk.

"Now that we're all here, Gamma, show our friend here his handiwork."

"Aye sir!" Gamma's fingers were like lightning against the screen, and in an instant a certain video was playing. The feed was a bit fuzzy; having been taken by a traffic light camera, but one thing was obvious: Ronin was the one on camera.

Him and a particular group of people.

"Where did you get this?" Ronin was mortified at the scene shown on Gamma's monitors; they seemed to cover nearly every angle of the street. Ronin also noticed one very important detail family's car, and his face paled considerably.

His figure was hunched over near said vehicle, his form was covered in blood, and multiple human corpses surrounded him; he could see the pieces of his wings on one of the screens too. It was morbid in his eyes. But there was something missing from the footage.

"Where are my family's corpses?" A confused look crossed the group's faces. They had expected him to be a bit more upset than this, but he was eerily calm. Gamma wasn't fooled by his facade, she could see the pain radiating in his eyes, but she wouldn't pry; she was never one for confrontations. "Quit gawking and tell me where my family went, damnit!" He raised his voice, willing himself not to shed a single tear.

"We never came across your family. And they were never present in the footage." Gamma's response got a stare that could rival death itself.

"Then rewind the fucking footage!" Adam never even flinched through the ordeal, but he was still confused. _What is he talking about?_

"This is the only footage we obtained, and we never found any indication that anyone besides you and the humans were there." Adam stated stoically. Gamma and Neo watched the exchange in silence, there wasn't anything they could say to change this turn of events.

 _Oh wait!_

"Actually, Adam, there may be a bit of miscommunication going on right now." Gamma said with a sigh. "His family members are human," she turned to Ronin. "Aren't they?" He nodded in response. "Honestly Adam, you should know that faunus genes can pop up almost anywhere in our day and age." She cracked her knuckles simultaneously. "Interracial 'mating' and all that." Neo seemed to give a silent chuckle at her wording on that particular subject.

"The big issue with that is, both sides of my family have never been with faunus before, and that still doesn't answer why they aren't in the footage."

Gamma realized this issue as well, but then a thought she wished hadn't come to mind. "I… think I… know... the answer… to that." She instantly paled at the thought of what had occurred and the devil's reaction to such. "But first, Adam, Neo, I think we need to restrain him first."

Ronin knew where she was going, because he had already found them. "No need." A horrified look came across his person as he realized what they did as he went insane.

 **They burned the bodies.**

Adam took this moment to strike. "You see what those creatures will do? Your family wasn't even faunus, and they still did this to their own kind." Adam put a comforting hand on Ronin's shoulder, which he slapped off. "But think of what you can achieve, now that you know the truth. You can protect those that are their targets. Will you help us protect our kind?"

Gamma saw another rerun of Adam's recruitment schemes, but this was far from the normal response. The look in Ronin's eyes puzzled her. _What is that look there?_ It wasn't rage or sadness like she was used to. It wasn't like Neo's demented bloodlust. This was something she had never seen on a soldier before, because it was alien to her all together.

It was the look of duty, chivalry, a new purpose…

A protector.

"Well, they already labeled me as such." He finally answered. "So why not join the army of the damned?"

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **DA: And now you have met the rest of the team. What do you have to say to the fine people at home, Maya?**

 **Maya: KEEP READIN THIS. MAYBE YOUR GRANDKIDS WILL READ IT SOMEDAY TOO.**

 **DA: There you go Maya. Now that's planning ahead. Anyway, It has been officially one week since we have started working on this fic and it has been AWESOME. We aren't stopping any time soon, right Maya?**

 **Maya: Hell no. I have given up precious sleep for this shit. I AIN'T STOPPIN YET!**

 **DA: And so ends another chapter of Trials of the Damned. If you like the story or think there are a few critiques we need to hear, feel free to leave us a review. Any last words Maya?**

 **Maya: Actually… How much can't can a white girl can't if a white girl could not even?**

 **DA:...Bye.**

 **Maya: WAIT! THE ANSWER IS YOU JUST CAN'T!**


	5. Chapter 5: Graves Part One

**A/N:**

 **DA: oh god, do we have to Maya?**

 **Maya: Huh? I was eating ice cream; I clearly don't know what you're talking about.**

 **DA: But we already finishe the twelth chapter.**

 **Maya: … DA…. Are you drunk?**

 **DA: N… No, your dru-**

 **Maya: STAY AWAY FROM MY ALCOHOL. YOU CAN'T HANDLE VODKA FOOL.**

 **DA: FOR MOTHEA RUSI… MOTHER RU…**

 **Maya: IT'S MOTHER RUSSIA FOR CHRIST SAKE. I am not taking care of you when the hangover hits.**

 **DA: BUT YOU PROMISED!**

 **Maya: … Ugh… Guess I'll do the disclaimer today.**

 **Disclaimer: Drunken DA and I don't own any rights to RWBY or any references made within this fic. We only own our OCs.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5:** _Graves_

"Hey Nora, can you get the door for us?" Blake asked the hyperactive girl with a hammer more painful than getting run over by a truck.

"Sure thing Captain Blake!" The energetic leg breaker was quick to pull out her hammer. Just before she could destroy her target, her partner stepped in to stop her.

 _Don't break the door Nora,_ Ren had shown her on his scroll.

After the breach, Ren had gone to the doctor to see if he had sustained any unbeknownst injuries from the fight. Unfortunately, due to a medical error by the nurse, the doctor had given Ren a pain medication that Ren was highly allergic to. When he was given the medication, Ren had gone into a coma for a few days, until he had awoken two days prior. As a result of the incident, Ren had lost his voice, and the doctors didn't have any real time frame for when it would come back.

Luckily, his ability to keep Nora out of unnecessary trouble hadn't wavered in the slightest.

Nora would normally go through with her antics if Ren wouldn't say anything, but since he returned yesterday with the bandages around his throat, Nora had become more subdued for Ren's sake. She may have been incredibly hyperactive, and possibly addicted to pancakes, but she knew she shouldn't press her friends' limits; she didn't want him to be in anymore pain than he already was.

"Sorry, I've been anxious lately. We never got to go on our mission, AND I HAVEN'T HAD PANCAKES IN THREE DAYS!" she proclaimed over dramatically. It reminded the others of someone going through a relapse, but if that was the case then Nora was forever experiencing a relapse. It honestly wasn't surprising to them, this was just Nora being… well Nora. "So what's new, where's Ruby. **GASP!** Did she prepare a get well surprise party for Ren? WITH PANCAKES?"

A concerned look crossed the team's face at the mention of Ruby. Nora hadn't noticed, being preoccupied by her imagination, but Ren was as sharp as ever. _What happened to Ruby?_ he typed to the worried team.

Yang was first to respond to the silent warrior. "Nothing happened to Ruby. She's just…" she couldn't find the right words for what her little sister was going through. She wasn't exactly depressed, but she wasn't sad either; it was more or less something in-between that she couldn't identify off the top of her mane.

Weiss was also quite confused about the situation as well. She had learned a lot about social interactions from her team since they were brought together, but she wasn't quite as familiar with what was conflicting the dunce.

Blake, on the other hand, knew all too well. She had seen and felt the same pain Ruby went through during her time in the White Fang. She had spent a lot of her years with them learning how to fight with Adam. When she was sent to a rally, or boycott, that went south, she would sometimes feel like she didn't achieve her goal because she didn't try hard enough, or that she had possibly done something to ensure the group's failure.

Well, she thought she understood, but that wasn't the whole case.

But her misconception helped her maintain the level-headed role of the team she was most dependable for.

"She's taking the results from the mission a little hard, but she'll be fine soon enough." Blake said, rather sure of herself.

"I wouldn't bet money on that." Jaune Arc had opened the door to team JNPR's room, having heard the conversation from inside. "She sounded pretty upset."

"Jaune, I highly doubt you'd understand what Ruby is going through."

"None of you do." Pyrrha interjected, with a look of understanding upon her face. "By the way, glad to see you've returned Ren."

 _Thanks, but I never got a clear answer on what happened to Ruby._

"Ren, the only words needed to describe what happened are bizarre, or horrifying." Jaune said with a sigh.

 _It couldn't have been that bad._ Ren typed with doubt written all over his face.

"Ruby turned down a cookie, first of all." Weiss started, watching the change in team JNPR's expressions. Pyrrha looked shocked, Nora seemed to still be processing this surprising news, Jaune's mouth hung open in a gallant 'O' shape, and Ren was unfazed by the revelation.

"Then," Blake intervened, "we found her listening to 'The Ghost of You' by MCR." This statement actually elicited a response from Ren, the mild surprise was expressed by the slight widening of his eyes. Pyrrha, and Nora, on the other hand, seemed confused. Pyrrha was the first to ask the question they both had in mind.

"What is MCR?"

Blake was about to answer, when Jaune did it for her.

"It means My Chemical Romance." Both team RWBY and Ren were shocked at the fact Jaune would know of the group. "My mom had forbid me from listening to them, but one of my friends let me borrow his scroll to listen. They're awesome."

 _Yet you aren't surprised that she would listen to them?_ Ren quirked an inquisitive eyebrow.

"I'm still in shock that _Ruby Rose_ turned down a cookie." Jaune defended himself.

Then Pyrrha brought up what she and Jaune had heard along with the rest of Beacon, "And what was with the death threat earlier?"

That last bit was what really shocked Ren. _Death threat?_ his scroll read. Ren didn't have any blood siblings, Nora was the closest thing he had to such a role, but no matter what the situation he would never threaten her life; even out of spite, those words would never leave his lips. To think that someone as sweet as Ruby would cross that sibling boundary was beyond stunning.

Yang decided to clear that bit up herself. "Oh, I had tried to find out what song she was listening to, and once I did she yelled a little and stormed out with Crescent Rose. So, long story short, her face was as red as a ruby.." Yang tried to crack a smile, trying to break the tension, but Weiss did that for her.

"So to cheer her up, Blake decided to fix this the only way one can cheer up the dunce."

Blake rolled her eyes at the simplicity of the answer, "Food, and a few sweets if she wants any."

"Oh whatcha making, whatcha making?" Nora was bouncing with energy and questions. "OH! Is it pancakes!? Or maybe sloth shaped pancakes!?"

Weiss hushed the hammer head before the migraine could set in. "If you must know, we are preparing a roasted red pepper, mozzarella and basil stuffed chicken with a side of potatoes, and a nice apple cider to finish the meal." she finished with a smile. "It's my favorite dinner."

 _I thought you were cheering Ruby up, not Weiss,_ Ren texted to the group.

Yang cleared up the confusion with a surprising statement, "We are, it's Ruby's favorite dish too." She paused. "Even if she does call it 'pizza chicken' on a regular basis."

Jaune tilted his head in surprise. "Wow. I didn't think she'd like something so…" He seemed to struggle for words.

"Fancy?" Pyrrha offered.

"Yeah, fancy! That's the word." He declared, throwing a thankful smile in Pyrrha's direction. "I thought for sure that you guys only had shared your thing for combat skirts."

"Never thought a member of the pancake brigade had such fine taste." Nora cooed, a finger resting on her chin.

"There's nothing wrong with sharing their like for certain things; it just gives them a chance to bond as teammates." Pyrrha said with a smile.

Ren shrugged as he raised his scroll, nonchalant as ever. _You learn something new every day. By the way, what's this meal made with? Since we're on the topic of food choices._

"Let's see, boneless skinless chicken breasts, or if Ruby doesn't want chicken, Weiss' future implants." The heiress gave a mortified look at the brawler as both teams started laughing. "Anyway, eight ou-Hey!"

Weiss took the list from Yang's grasp, ignoring her cry of protest with an indignant huff.

"Boneless, skinless, chicken strips, 8 ounces of fresh mozzarella, one twelve ounce jar of roasted red peppers, a bunch of basil, fresh parmesan, Valesian seasoning, and we already had the salt and pepper." Weiss informed her fellow hunters in training.

 _Well, that's nice and all, but you're missing the most important thing._ Ren was holding the list of produces they had brought with them to the store and had written what they were missing: One _Ruby Rose!_

The girls realized what Ren was implying, Ruby hadn't returned to the dorm since she left.

After she stormed off, Ruby had texted Yang, and told her she was running an errand for Ozpin.

"Ya I should probably text her to hurry, before she gets stuck in the city."

After the breach, General Ironwood had placed a strict curfew for the airship docking time. If they aren't back by 8:00, they'll have to spend the night in the city.

And it was already 7:10.

 _Hey Rubes, you better hurry to the airships, they won't be going off till tomorrow if you don't hurry. Plus we're making a special dinner tonight._

Yang hit the send icon, and returned her scroll to her pocket. The ringtone that played moments after signaled a response from Ruby and nearly tore her pants trying to get it back out.

 _Don't worry sis, we got a ride, also if it's anything with red meat, please keep it out of eyesight! Anything else is fantastic. See you in thirty minutes._

Yang was confused by many things in that one text. _We? Who's we? And since when has Ruby ever strayed from red meat? She loves steak._

"Yang, what's wrong?" Blake noticed her partner's sudden look of confusion and concern, a similar, but subdued look crossed her own features.

"Nothing, just a text from Ruby. She'll be here in thirty minutes."

"Thirty!? It's going to take an hour to make this! How are we going to finish before she gets back?" Weiss exclaimed. She stopped her fretting, and turned to team JNPR, her expression blank. A silence ensued between the groups for a few moments.

"What is it Weiss?" Jaune asked hesitantly.

She pointed an unwavering finger towards the offending blond knight. "You're all helping."

* * *

 _ **Two hours earlier…**_

"Can you describe what you found, Miss Rose?"

Ruby was chewing a piece of mint gum at the time the police had arrived to investigate the scene. When they had arrived at the scene, Ruby had taken it upon herself to prevent further contamination. The whole scene was cut off with hand-made 'police tape: Ruby edition' which read: Crime scene do not cross. Unfortunately, in her haste, a few of the signs had come down, and she wound up replacing them with rose petals; courtesy of her semblance. She was obviously shaken by the whole ordeal, but her first semester in Beacon had taught her that there would always be morbid casualties; some Grimm related, others not.

Then a thought struck her. _This could've been Vale if we hadn't stopped the Grimm._ A sense of relief washed over her, even as one question in particular plagued her thoughts. _But who… or what did this to these people? There aren't any Grimm in the city anymore…_

She had been trying to come up with a logical answer to said question when the authorities arrived.

Now she had to go over the very scene she was now trying to forget. "Sure, but don't expect me to go into detail." She found herself chewing just a bit faster, trying to keep a certain taste from overtaking her senses once again.

So she went over the scene as best she could without going green, what she had found, and what she had done up until she had called.

Apparently, some of the cops that were sent to question Ruby must have been rookies because some of them went green, just at the mention of the smell. One of them threw up behind his cruiser at her rather graphic descriptions of the corpses.

Though what really disturbed the cops was the look on Ruby's face as she finished her story. _Why is she smiling?_

"Um.. *ahem* Miss Rose, are you by any chance, a huntress?" he asked, hoping the answer was-

"In training, yes."

Dust dammit; he wasn't being paid enough for things like this. First it was the breach, now it was bloodbaths!

And at every scene, there was a hunter or huntress just waiting for a medal or something. When hunters were involved, it always meant that the police would get the shaft while the hunters got off scot free.

Not to mention the Red Reaper had to be the one to find the scene. This kid was at every weird incident, every attack, and all of it started with that dust robbery a few months back!

"Ok, why is it that whenever something weird happens in this city, you seem to be right around the corner, HUH!? Why are you even here today?" The officer in question's eyes narrowed slightly in in suspicion.

Ruby just gave a sheepish chuckle. "Just good timing I guess." A small awkward smile made itself known on her features.

Then another cop came over and gave his theory on what happened. "Or maybe she's the one who did it! Her rose petals are all over the scene!"

"What!? No! Those were from when I tried to put up a barrier so no one else messed with the scene! And I was only in the city today to pick up a new student for Beacon!" Ruby exclaimed, horror and shock clearly written on her face. She would never **kill** another human being.

"Seriously?! There are more of you in the city?" The cop was visibly horrified at the thought of more hunters and huntresses.

"Well, I'm not sure about that actually. I was looking for them when I found," She gestured to the scene of the crime. "Hell by the looks of it."

"Hell? What's hell?" One of the body baggers had overheard the conversation. Ruby merely stared at the man in shock.

"You've never read anything by Gehenna?" She marveled. Several of them shook their heads. "What!? She's only one of the best authors ever!"

What Ruby was referring to was the author known as Gehenna, a popular young adult's novelist who was famous across remnant for her "Heaven and Hell" series. Ruby was a huge fan of her work with bizarre yet amazing stories.

Ever since her first few novels, people have been referencing the book's places and terms in pop culture; hell being one of the more popular ones. According to the books, it was where people that had committed 'sins', wrongdoings, when they were alive went to as punishment for said sins. It was an incredibly interesting plot device in Ruby's eyes. Then there was Heaven, and Ruby saw that as even cooler, hoping that if such a place existed, that her mother was allowed peace there. A place where the just and righteous went once they died, such a place seemed fitting for her mother, and maybe her team when the time came.

Suddenly, an ingenious idea struck Ruby, and she turned to the officer that had been questioning her. "Actually, I think I may be able to help the case, if you guys help me."

The officer adjusted his hat. "I'm listening." He was willing to do anything so he could wrap up this case.

"Hold on, we can handle this case on our own, thank you." The bitter cop wanted to get as far away from any hunter as soon as possible. However the other appeared to disagree, if the small scowl on his face was any indication.

The two cops seemed to be holding a conversation with just their eyes, because Ruby could see that they were staring intently at each other; she could swear she saw sparks flying between them.

Eventually, they sighed and nodded to each other, coming to an agreement. "What do you want help with exactly?"

"I may have some friends that can help with the investigation." _Well, I hope._ She ignored that fleeting thought.

"Help how?" The bitter cop was hesitant to let the _red reaper_ help. After all she was just a teenager, and a huntress in _training._ According to protocol she shouldn't be involved in the investigation under any circumstances; until she graduated at least.

"Well one of them has an intangibility semblance, so-"

"Semblance, what's a semblance?" A certain rookie cop asked from the rear of his cruiser. Poor guy was still a little green around the gills; Ruby was just honestly amazed by how uninformed these men were.

"Wow, you guys are really outdated."

"You little-" Bitter was about to slap cuffs on red when his partner placed a firm hand on his shoulder, squeezing in unspoken warning.

 _What the hell is your problem?_ Bitter's partner was glaring silently, demanding an answer to the unspoken question. He honestly didn't understand why his partner was becoming so hostile towards the teen; maybe this was why he wasn't allowed to assist with crowd control.

"Forget the semblance, how can they help with the case?"

Ruby went over what Ozpin had told her about the two, and what he sent to her scroll. Thankfully they seemed to believe her once she showed them physical proof.

"All right, but what do you want in return for their services?" the nicer cop asked.

"For you guys to find them, they were supposed to arrive at Beacon, but both jumped ship and now they're somewhere in the city." Ruby failed to notice the officers deadpan reactions. Yet in a matter of minutes an APB was sent out for both girls.

Ruby grinned. It seemed this mission was going to be a success as well.

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **DA: MMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!**

 **Maya: What peasant? I don't have any more Tylenol.**

 **DA: Can I drive? I wanna dive!**

 **Maya: No. I can't let you do that; innocent lives would be in danger.**

 **DA: But I wanna dr-BBBBLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAA.**

 **Maya: That is why. I don't need THAT all over my new leather seats.**

 **DA: What about the last words? We never finished the chapter.**

 **Maya: This is only part one DA. Calm down, part two is near completion.**

 **DA: BUT I WANNA FIN-BBBBBBLLLLLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA**

 **Maya: …. I'll leave you to it then. LEAVE A FUCKIN REVIEW PLEASE. IT ACTS AS MEDS FOR THIS FOOL.**


	6. Chapter 5: Graves Part Two

**A/N:**

 **Maya: PART FUCKIN TWO. THAT MEANS MORE REVIEWS. I'M BUSTIN THESE RHYMES CAUSE I GOT THE TIME. HAHAHAHHAHAHAHA! SPEAK BROTHER DA!**

 **DA: … This is what happens when you let Maya listen to Eminem.**

 **Maya: It cannot be helped. I decided to become a rap god, and a rap god I shall become. :3**

 **DA: Anyway, sorry about splitting chapter 5 you guys, this one was particularly hard for us.**

 **Maya: Too much strife on the mic, ya know?**

 **DA: Maya, this isn't 8 Mile!**

 **Maya: SILENCE. I AM THE NEW LADY GAGA!**

 **DA: SHE WASN'T A RA- never mind, I'm just going to do the disclaimer.**

 **Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to RWBY or any real life references, but we own the OC team name and characters.**

* * *

"So what is this _dangerous_ semblance of yours?" Ethra followed alongside Azure, adjusting her scarf once again. This girl was interesting, she was funny, observant, and she had a pretty complex but powerful aura. She had been following the teen with a cloak of nightshade to who knows where just so she could show off her semblance.

"Whelp," She started, popping the 'p'. "I can make feathers from my aura."

Ethra blinked. "What's so dangerous about a few feathers?" Azure smirked in response, a glint of mischief shining in her eyes.

"You'll see," A grin had overtaken her features, and she pulled Ethra along by the wrist. "Why must you walk so slow woman?"

"It would help if you told me _where_ we're going you know." Ethra sighed at the girl's antics.

"To the local park, it's big enough, should be empty by now, and it's also" Azure stopped her vigorous power walking. "Right here. See? That didn't take long at all."

"It took us an hour to get here because you got sidetracked." Ethra deadpanned. Azure shrugged in reply.

"My tummy had the rumblies that only hands could satisfy."

"Hands?"

"I said cookies, why would I eat hands? Everyone knows orphan meat is where it's at."

"..." Ethra could only gape at that explanation.

"Don't judge me; I clearly have problems that can never be solved by the average human. Or faunus." She continued their trek into the park. "Come on; let's get this over with so I can get more cookies."

Ethra also learned another very important fact about Azure.

She was completely insane. Smart, incredibly friendly, but insane none the less. She honestly didn't understand some of the things she would say in regular conversation; she'd been mumbling something about 'black holes' at some point during their walk, whatever those were. Azure would just brush her off when she questioned her thought processing, waving her hand and saying she was simply experiencing a caffeine induced sugar rush; sixteen cups could change a person. That and she was dropped on her head several times as a toddler.

"Alright! Now, you stand right… here," she started setting up items around a mentally set perimeter of the park as if setting up an improv, "and, finally, I stand here." Benches, metal trash cans, she placed everything in a large circle; she used the trees as place holders when she ran out of things to use. Ethra stood just outside of the circle, watching this transpire.

"Um, quick question, does your aura include explosions?" _Because I wouldn't put it past you._

"Yep. So prepare yourself," She sat down cross legged in the center. "We may or may not have to run from the police; depending on how badly I might screw this up." She placed her hands together, palm to palm, and closed her eyes. "No more inquisitive Ethra, concentration time."

Ethra ceased her questions as she watched Azure. The girl appeared to be meditating, the only exception being that she wasn't repeating some sort of mantra as she did so. For a few minutes nothing happened, and Ethra couldn't help but wonder if Azure's semblance was explosive and invisible; luckily that didn't seem to be the case. Just as the thought crossed her mind a light purple essence began to shine from Azure's hands.

At first Ethra thought she was channeling her aura, but it wasn't what she expected. Instead of her form being surrounded like most hunters are when they channel their aura, Azure's hadn't done so.

It was… floating. Her aura appeared in the form of small lavender orbs, each one was beautifully transparent, and gave off a faint glow; there were at least thirty of them. At this point Azure had opened her eyes and dropped her hands, looking over each one of her creations with care.

"I thought you said feathers?" She honestly didn't know what to say, given that she expected her ears to be rin-

 **CRASH**

Ethra got her answer when a nearby statue lost its head. She cringed, but she was quite happy with the fact that it wasn't her that was being decapitated. Watching as the torso of the stone figure became littered in cracks, she heard something akin to glass breaking, and turned back to Azure; watching the orbs with caution.

"What the Hell are these?" Ethra asked.

"Eggs." Ethra's new demented friend answered, although her response caught Ethra off-guard; it was a pretty bizarre statement. And it made Azure all the more hysterical with her laughter. "HA hahaha haha the- the look on your face, Priceless. I think Mr. Statue agrees." Once she had calmed down and regained much needed oxygen, she found a new emotion amongst Ethra's features; confusion and irritation. "Now before you try to kill me, let me expla-"

Before Azure could continue, the sound of sirens had reached the two huntresses.

"Oh crap, we gotta go!" Ethra quickly grabbed Azure and started running.

"What? Wh... WAH!" Azure was pulled so hard, she thought Ethra had dislocated her shoulder.

 _Shouldn't I be the one yelling 'run' when the cops show up? Why'd she bolt first?_ She stumbled as she tried to keep up with Ethra's pace. Her lack of focus caused her orbs to shatter simultaneously, the shimmering purple shards dissolved into nothing moments later. Another thought made itself know.

 _...And what about Mr. Statue?!_

* * *

 _ **Thirty minutes later...**_

"Did you say, 'purple' cloak?" The cop on the radio asked.

The bitter cop pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation as he clarified the color of a FUCKING cloak, yet again. "Yes it was purple."

"No it isn't, it's nightshade." came the interjection from the huntress.

"IT DOESN'T MAT-"

"Oh, nightshade! Ya I saw them." One of the other patrolmen responded to Ruby's comment.

"...What." Bitter asked through clenched teeth.

"Ya, they were at a park 20 minutes ago."

"I sent the APB 30 MINUTES AGO! HOW DID YOU NOT KNOW IT WAS THEM!?"

"Because you said purple, Lewis, her cloak was obviously nightshade." The cop at the park defended.

The bitter cop, whose name was now revealed as Lewis to Ruby, gave what qualified as a death stare in Ruby's book, in said huntress's general direction.

"Hey, I did say it was nightshade."

 _Oum, I hate this brat._

"Alright FINE! Patrol, be on the lookout for two girls: One in a grey hoodie with grey hair, and a girl with a 'nightshade' cloak." Lewis spat out that word with irritation. At the word nightshade, however, a number of people over the radio collectively went, "Oh, ya I've seen them."

 _I hate all of you._ His knuckles had gone white with how hard he was clutching the steering wheel.

"Ok, what the hell is your problem?" Lewis' partner, who Ruby later learned was named Francis, stood beside Lewis' car.

"My problem? Oh, you already know what my problem is, it's those damn hunters!" He shouted so Ruby could hear, which she did, as evident by the guilty look on her face. And with that image in his head, Lewis started his car and started his drive toward the sighting of the two huntresses, leaving Francis to figure out what to do next.

Well, he could ask the second biggest question that's been plaguing his thoughts for the night.

 _How the hell is she so sedate?_

For the twelve years he'd been in the Vale PD, he was always curious about how hunters were so calm, even when they played witness to the most brutal of crime scenes. It made sense, they couldn't fight some of the most dangerous creatures on Remnant if they couldn't keep a tight hold on their own emotions; fear in particular. A scared hunter was a dead one, at least that's what he personally believed. But this wasn't the scene for a Grimm slaughter; this was pure human, or faunus, brutality.

And she wasn't even a fully-fledged huntress, she was in training.

"Um, why are you staring at me? I don't have someone on me do I?!" She quickly scanned her clothes for pieces of victim.

"No, I was just curious about something."

"About what?"

 _What's the harm in asking?_ "I was wondering how you're so comfortable with such a scene."

 _Comfortable!? Wow, I knew I was calm, but comfortable is a bit of a stretch._

"Trust me, I'm not comfortable." Ruby had become a bit pale. Having to think of the scene was bring the vile back.

"Ya, that did seem like a little much, even for a huntress in training." He adjusted the rim of his hat. "You're still a kid too, huntress or not."

Ruby blinked owlishly for a moment. "I'm not sure if you're insulting me, or trying to make me feel better."

"Sorry, I'm good with a gun, not social skills. But still, how are you able to keep so calm with... Whatever happened here?"

"It would have been worse."

"What?" _Worse? How could this have been worse?_

"Way more people could've been hurt," Ruby's words came slowly; she picked her next words carefully. "It wouldn't have just been limited to certain people; little kids might have been slaughtered. So... Even though it's a bit cruel, I'm just glad that the carnage stopped with them." She glanced at the officers placing body bags into an ambulance.

"I guess you're right, whatever did this must have been satisfied with the results of what happened."

"The biggest question I'm asking is 'what did happen'?"

"Maybe your friends will have some answers for us."

* * *

"Seriously, why... are we still...running?" Azurine panted as she continued to sprint through the streets of Vale. Her breath was coming in short, strained puffs; Azure was fit, but this was ridiculous, even by her standards

By her count, they had run a consecutive 30 miles, between the two of them. She rarely ran that kind of distance alone, but Ethra on the other hand had no such issue. Courtesy of her semblance, she was able to negate pain and fatigue when she needed to.

Though Azure didn't have such luxury.

Ethra snapped out of her flight response, and realized where they were.

" **From Dust till Dawn"**

"Oh sorry, I was kind of out of it. Let me get you some freeze before your legs fall off."

"PLEASE!" Azure was on the verge of collapsing.

Ethra opened the door, but kept it open a little while so Azure could feel the relief of the store's AC. "Don't you want to come in?" Ethra asked her new psychotic friend. Azure declined, stating that "If I go in there... you'll have to drag me out." The last bit required her to catch her breath again.

 _Yikes, how far did we go?_ As she stepped into the store, she did the math in her head. They were at Barbara Park, which was in the community district, and they were now at "From Dust Till Dawn" which was the financial district. As she placed the Freeze uncut on the counter, she came up with her answer.

 _25 miles!? Wow, I owe Azurine a huge apology!_

As the old man bagged the freeze, she quickly grabbed a canister for crushed dust, and filled it with green dust. She knew that Azure would get a kick out of the gesture. Considering her childish nature, Ethra could tell that Azure would have a few pranks in mind for such a thing.

Whilst Ethra was in the store, Azure was doing her best to stay on her feet, the ones that were noticeably swaying. _If I have to do anymore walking today, so help me god...heh god._ She chuckled to herself as she remembered contemplating whether she should have included 'him' in the first issue of "Heaven and Hell". Then the shock of how popular the series had become, hit her again. To think an explanation to her mother of what religion was to her had become so popular in Remnant. At least the royalties from the books helped her find an easy source of income. She hated having to resort to her mother for cash.

Although, she never really expected to be all that good at writing. She was lazy, forgetful, and there were times where she couldn't even remember her plans for the plot, but she managed. Somehow.

It helps to have a semi strict mother play publisher when you need her to; even if it was a bit mean of her to force her to edit everything herself. Thankfully, she found someone to help her, without Glynda finding out. She never got his or her actual name, but she went off of a hunch and trusted him. She only knew him by the screen name, Pan_Master32. The thought of his/her screen name always brought a grin to her face.

"Um, excuse me miss."

The sudden voice from behind Azure was enough to jolt some much needed energy into her. As she turned, she heard the distinctive sound of a bell from the door of the shop. Both Azure and Ethra laid eyes upon a man in a white shirt, and suspenders, most likely a cop, judging by his attire.

"Ah, crap." Azure was too tired to give a shit, so she held hands above her head in surrender. "Just take me."'

Ethra, on the other hand, was searching for an escape route, but couldn't find one that included Azure.

"No more running, dammit!" The cop looked beyond pissed.

"Look, we can explain-"

"Forget it, just get in the car!" He started walking to a patrol car that was parked across the street.

Both girls looked at each other in confusion of what was happening. Ethra was the first to question this odd development.

"Why? Can you not tell me my rights so I won't have to go to court?' She paused for a moment. 'Again?"

The pissy cop looked at them with the utmost irritation, "What the fuck are you talking about? Just get in the frikking car, so I can be done with you annoying little shits!"

"Wow, if this is a cop, I'd rather be robbed." Ethra let her thoughts on the officer shine through.

"Meh, it's just his time of the month." Ethra nodded in agreement.

"JUST GET IN THE FUCKING CAR!"

* * *

 _ **One Hour Later...**_

"So if they found them an hour ago, why are we just now returning to the crime scene?" Ruby tilted her head in confusion. She and Francis were sitting on the trunk of his cruiser, waiting for the arrival of the two huntress prodigies.

"Lewis needed to run a background check on your friends after one of them had shared a few choice words."

"What do you mean?" Ruby hoped something bad hadn't happened; she didn't know either of those girls after all.

"Well, apparently, when another officer came to pick them up, not only did they run away, but they also destroyed a statue in Barbara Park." He sighed. "They also outright mocked an officer, and one of them had previously been arrested."

"What? Who?" Ozpin never told her about either of them having been arrested; there was nothing about it in any of the files she'd received.

"Apparently, Ethra Vale was charged with conspiracy to assassinate... General Ironwood!?" The officer went over his notes to clarify if it was a mistake. It seemed that this wasn't a mere typo.

This news shocked Ruby. _Why would professor Ozpin accept a student who had attempted to assassinate one of his best friends?_ "That can't be right! Please tell me there's something else there about it."

Francis quickly skimmed the file on his scroll. "The charges were dropped, because the officers that took her into custody forgot to Mirandize her." He blinked, and a frown overtook his features. "How on Remnant do you forget to tell someone their rights? That's basic procedure!" Then he saw who made the arrest. "Dust damn it, Lewis!"

"So what about the statue?"

"Azure paid for all the damages, and they claimed that they both, and I quote, 'REALLY needed to take a piss' which was why they fled."

"Hey, a woman's gotta go, when a woman's gotta go." said the nightshade cloaked woman approaching from behind the duo.

Ruby smiled as she laid eyes on her (hopefully) new comrades. She hopped off the back of the car, and extended her hand to the two new faces. "Hello, um... sorry about the police escort, it was convenient at the time." she scratched the back of her head with her other hand.

The two stopped for a moment, briefly glancing at each other. Instead of taking her hand and shaking like any normal non caffeine influenced individual, Azure instead choose to glomp Ruby out of pure spontaneity.

"Azure, no!" But Ethra was too late, Azure had chosen her target.

"WAAAH!" Ruby, not having enough time to prepare, had crashed to the ground with a slightly dense woman crashing on top of her. "Ow." Azure was oblivious to how much she weighed; even though most of it was muscle.

In the haste of the action, detective Francis had pulled his pistol and had it aimed at Azure.

"Wow! Hey, calm down Tex, I'm just saying hi!" Azure tried to explain herself while lying on top of Ruby.

"Tex?" Francis lowered his weapon, confused by yet another term that was completely alien to him.

This time, Ethra was the one to clear up the confusion. "Tex is the name of a bad-ass in a popular sci-fi comedy called, 'Red vs. Blue."

"What are kids watching these days?" He asked whilst holstering his gun.

As Azure helped Ruby up, both took offense to the statement, "Hey, I'm not a kid!" exclaimed an insulted Azure.

"Ya!" Ruby concurred.

"I. Drink. Milk." Both stated in sync.

Both milk drinkers looked at each other in unison, one smiling that the other understood her, and the other with slight fear in her eyes.

There was a prominent look of horror in Azure's eyes. _This couldn't be… this girl is too young for Beacon, but she looks exactly like her._

Ruby hadn't fully caught on that the look in Azure's eyes was horror, not confusion. So to fix that 'confusion' she introduced herself.

"Hello Azure, I'm Ruby."

 _Ruby Rose._

 _The Prodigal Huntress._

 _The Red Reaper._

 _ **Summer's daughter!**_

That was the last thing to register in Azure's mind, and suddenly she was seeing black; unconscious.

"Azure!" Ruby managed to catch her before Azure hit the ground.

Both Ruby and Francis went to Azure's side, but Ethra remained patient as ever.

"Is she alright?" Ruby was slightly worried about Azure, having been told about the girl's combat and medical history.

"She'll be fine," a smiling Ethra assured, "she probably crashed from the caffeine burning off." Though Ethra knew that wasn't the case. Azure wouldn't be downed by something like this; she was too stubborn for such a thing. The term sugar crash wasn't even in her vocabulary, so what had caused this her seemingly random blackout? _What are you hiding Azure?_

"Oh, then she'll be fine. I speak from experience." Ruby sheepishly explained. She too had experienced a sugar crash, although they were pretty rare; Yang and Weiss had put her on restrictions ever since, but Blake would sneak her some during the night so she could burn her nocturnal energy. She would hide a secret stash for Ruby so, they could both benefit.

"Well, she won't be of any help in this state. You think you can take a look around for us Miss Vale?" Francis pointed over to the crime scene.

Ethra looked over at what was once a gore fest, but was reduced to a run of the mill crime scene now that the bodies had been removed from the area. Though the smell itself was still pungent in the air, not to mention the smaller traces of blood that had been overlooked. The only remaining corpse that was still there, besides the ones smeared on the pavement, was the one who's legs were still sticking out from under the hood.

So she decided to put her semblance to work, and took a look at the corpse from a whole new angle. She started walking to the truck… then she walked **into the truck**.

Ethra already had a strong stomach for gore, though this guy apparently didn't. He was nearly charred to the bone as she looked at the crushed body under the hood. _Yuck, looks like someone was trying to make pot roast!_ She reached her hand towards the remains, intending to further examine the extent of his corpse. What she did find however was far more valuable… she hoped.

As she receded from the wreck of the truck, she carried a laminated folder in her hand. It was soaked in blood, but she was hoping the green dust she bought earlier could fix it.

"Well, dang. You hunters are good! Whatcha got there?"

"I don't know, but you can probably clean it up with some green dust at the PD."

Ruby was relieved that Ethra was able to find something; she didn't want the police to complain about not holding up her end of the deal. "Way to go, Ethra!"

"How do yo- oh right, Ozpin sent you didn't he?" Ethra asked the red clad scythe wielder.

"Yep, oh speaking of which, we better hurry and head to the airships!" Ruby realized how the sun was setting on such an eventful day. She checked the time on her scroll realizing how late it had become. "Oh no, it's almost 7! We won't make it to the airships in time." They would never make it to the docks in time, and with Azure out of commission, it would only slow them down even more.

"Don't worry; I'll have someone at the PD arrange an airship once we're done. We still need to verify a few details since your friends are technically illegal aliens."

With that said, Ethra took Azure from Ruby's slightly shaking arms, and hoisted her over her shoulder. She gestured to the cruiser, "Shall we?"

* * *

Soon after the group had finished clearing up the mishaps of Ethra's and Azurine's antics, Francis had kept his promise and had his girlfriend, Leslie, arrange a police airship back to Beacon.

Azure had awoken, albeit with a new found shyness around Ruby, and was brought up to speed with what had transpired since she crashed. Apparently Ethra had found a few documents in the wreck, and they were being processed and examined as they spoke.

While the papers were being submitted into evidence, Ruby decided to get some answers about the 'conspiracy' charges, and Azure could assure herself that she never laughed as hard as she did that day, in her entire life, except for her joke on Glynda a few days prior.

Considering Ethra was rather touchy on the subject, Azure, having regained her sanity, explained the issue to Ruby. Ethra's full name was Ethra Vale the 3rd, descendant of the infamous anarchist Ethra Vale the 1st. Her grandmother was the very woman that started the last Great War before the time of peace had begun, by having assassinated General James L. Ironwood. "Now whenever Ethra the third comes to Beacon, she high tails it since most people associate her with her grandmother." Azure finished her explanation for Ruby.

 _Well... that was enlightening._ "So, you hide from the public because of what your grandmother did, even though you had nothing to do with it, given the fact you wouldn't have been **born yet**."

"I never said people were smart." Ethra defended her position. "Doesn't really help when you share the name of a criminal either." The result from her last statement was shared laughter between the three, with a small chuckle from Azure, who was oddly quiet; lack of sugar or not.

As the group relaxed after their collective chuckle, Azure's scroll buzzed, signaling that she had missed a call from her mother. "How come neither of you answered the call?" Azure asked.

Ruby scratched at the back of her neck awkwardly, "Well, isn't it considered rude to use someone else's scroll without permission?"

Azure couldn't argue with her, even if she wanted to. _Damn it, Rose!_

She checked her scroll, and saw the run time of the message.

 _18 minutes!? Oobleck probably tried to leave a message as well._ Azure knew for a fact that her mother wouldn't leave such a long message, her's were usually short and to the point; Oobleck was the only person she knew that could talk that long nonstop.

By the time Azure had listened to the ENTIRE message, which she promptly deleted, Francis had received word from Lewis about the status of the air ship. "He said and I quote, 'In 15 more minutes, we'll be finally rid of those annoying hunters.'"

Ruby's scroll read 7:10, so they needed to be ready by 7:25. "So guys, whe-"Ruby was cut off by the ringing of her scroll, and looked back to see that Yang had texted her. As she read the message, she instantly grew excited for what to expect when she returned to her dorm. When her fingers went to reply, a grumble from Azure caught her attention, as had one from Ethra as well.

"Hey, you guys, are you up for dinner with the rest of my team?"

Ethra seemed ecstatic to join, but looked concerned when she turned to Azurine. her compatriot still seemed a little shy around Ruby ever since she discovered her name. "Azure, are you ok?"

"What do you think, we run at least 30 miles today! Of course I'm hungry!" _And nervous out of my mind, but mostly hungry._

"It's settled then." before she could explain what was settled, Ruby had texted back her sister saying, although vaguely, that there'd be company.

"You guys are going to love my sister's cooking, she is a-"

Ruby rambled on, but only Ethra was listening to Ruby. Azure was too busy freaking out. _YANG TOO?! God damnit! Well, as long as no one asks questions, or gets too curious, I can still take it to my_ _ **graves**_ _._

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **DA: And that concludes part two of our longest chapter yet, and HOLY HELL this one was loooong.**

 **Maya: 21 pages of genius. If something doesn't sound right or things were repeated, just know that I was high on cookie dough, and DA was just… being DA.**

 **DA: WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!**

 **Maya: Many good things. This is sarcasm and cookie high talking. The real Maya is unavailable.**

 **DA: Should I leave a message?**

 **Maya: This person's voicemail box has not been set up. Please come again.**

 **DA: Fine, and so should the readers so we know where we need to improve upon in the story. Until next time, bye!**


	7. Chapter 5 Interlude: Home

**A/N:**

 **DA: Hello Trial fans, sorry we haven't posted in a while, we've had a lot going on, mostly with the fic.**

 **Maya: Yeah, and I went to a camp :D For a whole week :D I regret everything :D**

 **DA: It was a religious camp. Enough said.**

 **Maya: God's not dead! Probably…. Most likely on vacation or some bull shit.**

 **DA: Anyway, so as apology for torturing you guys, we decided to crank out a mini chapter for you guys introducing two other characters we'll be adding to the mayhem.**

 **Maya: WHOOP! DESTRUCTION OF PRIVATE PROPERTY! Let's kill a puppy, the children will fear me...**

 **DA: Way to set the tone, Maya.**

 **Maya: I know right? I wanted to give everyone the morbid feel. :D**

 **DA: Now on to the disclaimer.**

 **Disclaimer: We don't own jack shit except our OCs and plot lines. Also any references made are strictly for entertainment sources and plot development.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5.5:** _Home_

 _Shit, she's close, but where is she?!_

Blood was losing his name sake by the ounce every second he was breathing. Having to crawl for what felt like miles didn't help either.

 _Fucking hell, where's my leg?_

"Looking for this?"

 _FUCK!_

Blood didn't even bother looking back, he knew who that sadistic tinged voice belonged to, and what would happen if he went back.

"Oh come on, Hunter,' the next two sounds to horrify Blood were the sounds of gunfire, blasting open his hands, ' where's the savagery you're so well known for?"

"I SAID I WAS SORRY!"

The pause that followed was quickly broken by the sound of an empty clip being replaced with a fresh one.

"And you honestly thought that 'I'm sorry' would fix your mistakes? That it would make me forget all the shit you said? About my mom? About Yang? About me?"

"Ruby please, let me expl-"

 _ **BANG!**_

The first bullet from Crescent Rose's new clip destroyed its mark. Blood's jaw.

"Shut up, Hunter. You made your point clear." Blood could only watch in silent agony as a ray of emotions flashed through the reaper's eyes. Betrayal, anger, disgust, and misery were the more prominent ones he was able to identify. Her fist was clenched so hard around Crescent Rose's shaft that her knuckles had noticeably become whiter than usual.

As Hunter's tongue hanged out of what used to be his mouth, Ruby continued- **Hunter** -to torture the 'famous' Hunter Blood. Soon she started beating him with- **hey!** \- his own prosthetic leg. She then moved to his hands, changing- **wakey wakey** \- Crescent Rose to its scythe form, cutting off Hunter's hands, and foot. Finally, she changed her weapon back to-

" **BLOOD!"**

A moist Hunter woke from the darkest parts of his subconscious, eyes having adjusted to the dark of the airship interior, having shut off the lights for sleep. A pair of concerned, reptilian eyes were looking at the sweaty hunter, who was thankful for the guardian angel he calls his brother in arms.

"Fucking shit. Thanks, Eden."

"Wow, last name bases? Must have been a real shit fest. What was up with you?" The concern was soon joined by curiousness as the snake faunus hoisted himself onto his teacher's temporary bed.

"Haven't you ever heard of a nightmare before?"

"I always thought that was a type of horse. Didn't know it meant being tortured while you rest."

"Seriously? I would have thought you'd have plenty of those living in Benclave."

"So, what's got you all sweaty, and upset, dude?"

"Do you even have to ask?"

"Um, ya? From all the stories you told me, dude I wouldn't be surprised we'd be attacked at the boarding gates."

"Fair point." Hunter took a deep breath before he answered what was on his mind… or in his dreams, smearing it on the ground.

"It was about Ruby."

"Ah… the girl that gave you that scar."

Hunter's right hand instinctively went to his most wretched feature, a small scar on his left cheek. It wasn't that it was ugly, but the events that had caused it were what now haunted the formerly troubled hunter.

"In all honesty, I find this scar as a bigger symbol representing all the stupid shit I did."

"Before or after you lost your mom?" The look from Garnet was worth the playful charlie horse Lucius received as payment for the remark.

"Dick. It's just… from pissing off Goodwitch for four years, not to mention kissing her, to denouncing the Rose name entirely, as well as the Xiao Long's, I'm more than likely to be dead within five minutes of calling Ruby."

"Then don't call."

"Beg pardon?"

"Do you have to call her?"

"Well, ya if I'm going to make amends for all the shit I've done."

"Or… you take a few days to reintegrate into Valesian society since you've been in Benclave for the past five years."

"Ursa shit, you just wanna explore the city since you never left Benclave before."

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that, a happy coincidence." The poorly contained smirk on his face wouldn't fool a grimm. "Still, I think you're jumping the gun on this 'call on entry' strategy, and, made evident by the nightmare you just had, you think so too."

"That's probably it, but the longer I wait, the harder it is to actually apologize."

"Or perhaps you need to forgive yourself a bit, before you seek hers."

"What do you mean?"

"From how you described yourself over your stories before, when put in chronological order, you were continuously tearing anything of relation to who you were away from what you were trying to be. The first thing we need to do is bring back that poor bastard you abandoned, agreed?

Hunter gave this option some thought before answering his new apprentice, "... For a man who spent most of his life isolated from other people, you have some surprisingly insightful advice."

"But wait, there's more! I'm also a dancer." As to prove his point, Lucius jumped from the bed and started doing random dance moves he learned from the kids in Benclave.

"Ya, make it rain!"

"What?"

"Never mind, just get back to bed."

Having finished a mock rocker pose, Lucius climbed back into his own bed, but found himself too curious to sleep. "That reminds me, why did you kiss this Goodwitch lady? Wasn't she your teacher?"

Hunter smirked recalling the moment that always made him laugh. "Ya, she was, but I was still an ass back then, and I was just about to leave for Benclave. Though, while I was heading to the airship, I overheard Glynda talking to Ozpin bout how I really could have used a girlfriend considering the activities I partook in over prior years… so I saw it as an open invitation." He finished his explanation with a large grin.

"So she's a cougar?"

That last question had the two of them bawling their eyes out in hysterics. Unfortunately, they were unable to keep their laughter at a low volume, and were soon approached by an irritated man in a black hoodie.

"Would you two please shut up?! People are trying to sleep!"

Both hunters apologized for their volume, and the hooded guy left them.

After having calmed down, both of them started nodding off to sleep; one with no dreams to be had,

And one with dreams of home.

 **A/N:**

 **DA: And now, the Benclave brothers join the show. And what a show it shall be.**

 **Maya: It is in this moment I realize… That this is by far the shortest chapter we've written.**

 **DA: Well, there are a number of reasons for that…**

 **Maya: … School. Life. Other shit that relates to those things.**

 **DA: I was referring to the fact that the next chapter is already 30 pages long, and this was a inbetween piece to sedate story hunger.**

 **Maya: Oh… Completely forgot about that. :3**

 **DA: Still, if there is anything of importance we need to know about our writing style as of late, or prior, please leave a comment for the story.**

 **Maya: I believe the term is REVIEW, but do it anyway. We have no way of knowing where to go without the wonderful mass known as fans.**

 **DA: So until chapter six, Later.**


	8. Chapter 6: Fangs

**A/N:**

 **DA: Boy, do we have a treat for you, hunters and huntresses.**

 **Maya: That sounds like an intro to some failing game show on channel 7...**

 **DA: Well, even if it seems cheesy, we still have** _ **interesting**_ **plans to say the least. And by the end of this chapter, you won't be able to tell the heros from the villains, except when it comes to Maya.**

 **Maya: I am forever evil and good. DOUBLE AGENT TIME. I'll be like a mix of Superman and Joker. :3**

 **DA: Plus, if you use G+, you can follow the community for RWBY, and get hints about the characters, through the art presented by Maya. Not to mention what to expect from our characters by the** _ **look in their eyes**_ **.**

 **Maya: That was some spooky shit right there. They need to put that in P.T.**

 **DA: Well, we did label the story under** _ **angst.**_

 **Maya: ...This will slowly become a hangout for angsty people won't it?**

 **DA: WHY DO YOU THINK I CHOSE MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE?!**

 **Maya: Because we are mental in every possible way?**

 **DA: And on that note, ON TO THE DISCLAIMER.**

 **Disclaimer: We do not own RWBY, or any real life parallels. We do, however, own the OC's created, the future team, and the delicious plot.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6:** _Fangs_

' _Hey, bed marker.'_

Gamma turned her gaze from the monitor to the walking diabetes, and she groaned once she realized she'd have to respond. That traumatic incident would haunt her so long as Neo was around, it wasn't fair; she was technically still a… _puppy_ at the time.

"What the hell do you want, pink eye?"

Gamma's attempt at an insult merely made Neo smile; that small, and irritating smile that made Gamma's ears twitch in frustration and barely contained hatred.

' _I simply wanted to ask a favor of you. If you do this for me, I won't ever call you puppy or bed marker again.'_

"Yes you will, you hate me." _I also know about the loophole with "calling" involved._ "Just tell me what you want and get out." She was doing her best to keep the growl out of her voice.

' _I was simply going to ask you where the devil is.'_

"And what makes you think I would know?"

Neo gave the rottweiler a look that clearly said she was not amused. _'Are you kidding me? YOU HAVE EYES ON THE WHOLE F* $! &G Building!'_

Gamma could only stare at the scroll for a moment. "I didn't think you were one for censorship, but still; I don't know, nor care where he is ice milk, he's free to wander wherever he wants."

Neo paced a few seconds in frustration at the lack of cooperation from her subordinate. _'GAMMA BANE, I OUT RANK YOU!_ _Now tell me where-'_

"HAHAHAHAHAHA, YOU OUT RANK ME? First of all, I'm not a soldier, and second of all, if I were, Adam would put me WAY higher on the chain of command, above you."

' _And why the hell would he do that?'_

As the argument continued, a tapping noise came from one of the cameras. Both girls stopped their bickering for a second as they turned their attention to one of the monitors. What they found on screen was beyond bizarre.

It seemed that video production in progress was about to begin. The main demented star was checking his red hair in the camera lens; Gaining attention from his selected director, whilst making sure his yellow oval eye mask was on right. He wanted to make the blue dots symmetrical.

' _Thank Oum, one of these guys was a chem head.'_

It was even more fortunate that said chem head was his size. Though he hadn't worn a blue leather jacket since 'Danger Days', it was still his second favorite outfit out of the other albums.

"Hey, what the hell are you doin- HOLY SHIT YOU'RE GERARD WAY!"

The sudden proclamation turned every head in the room over to Ronin's direction.

"Surprise, Killjoys!" Party Poison acknowledged the fellow White Fang members.

Gamma could only stare intently at the monitor for a moment, before slowly turning to Neo. "Found him, and a costume party. Put on a cone and you're all set." What she didn't expect to see was a rather starstruck Neo, her scroll trembling slightly.

' _Holy shit, do you know who that is?'_

"Um… Ronin cosplaying as Party Poison from 'Danger Days'?

Neo responded to the mutt's stupidity with a slap to the ears, ignoring her small whimper of pain. _'NO you stupid mutt, that IS Party Poison, Ronin Holy is GERARD WAY!'_

"What are you talking about dairy queen, there isn't a chance in hell that Ronin is-" Before she could finish her sentence, Ronin struck Gerard's signature pose from numerous concerts.

"Oh my Oum, HE IS GERARD WAY!"

"Correct, Rotty." Both Gamma and Neo jumped at the sound of Ronin's voice from over the security room's PA system. "Now would you be so kind as to give the traffic report, Dr. Death Defy? For all the crash queens, and motor babies." He finished that last statement with a mischievous smile, and a round of applause from the fellow White Fang members in the cafeteria.

Neo looked at the mutt with pleading eyes, who in turn grinned slyly as she began to commence a certain protocol she'd been dying to use.

She typed a few things on a keyboard as she grabbed a nearby mic. When she spoke into it, a more masculine, gravely, yet extremely familiar voice played for the outpost.

" _ **Look alive, Sunshine!"**_

* * *

 _ **Five minutes earlier…**_

"Ronin, what are you wearing?"

Adam had seen some bizarre outfits from new recruits who thought they had better ideas for a soldier's uniforms, but this one was by far the weirdest. He knew that some recruit's chosen attire could be a bit… eccentric, but this one was definitely up there with the big ones; like the raw meat shirt that had made its way into the base. Gamma had promptly disposed of the atrocity once it had begun to rot, going so far as to rip it off the offending fashionista and bury it somewhere outside the base.

So when a certain winged faunus barged into his office with freshly red dyed hair, and a completely new outfit than what he'd originally worn a mere twenty four hours ago, he was a bit miffed. He understood that Ronin was still a new recruit, but seriously?

No one, and he meant _no one_ , just barged into his office unannounced, even that barbaric fool Oso was capable of following that simple rule.

And Ronin was told every rule this base had. You don't dispose the base's location, you don't assault another member of the white fang (though not many followed that rule), and you don't interrupt Adam while he was working.

So, as a killjoy, Gerard was more than happy to break each of those rules.

"Isn't it obvious, it's you as a teenager."

"... In what kingdom would I be wearing a blue leather jacket?"

"Say what you want, but you and I both know I look damn good in this." To prove a point, Ronin struck a pose that Adam was contemplating as proof of this new recruit's "chosen demographic".

"First of all, no, I'm not gay; second of all, this is for a new morale booster that I wanted to try out. Would it be ok if I was given permission to try it?" _Either way, I will do it._

The mention of a morale booster was what really caught Adam's attention. Ever since the breach and failure of Roman's plan, morale was in short supply. Even if they had been partially successful, with the destruction of a few buildings, and instilling a bit of fear into the people, it seemed it wasn't enough for his brothers and sisters. And personally, he felt the same way. He let a worthless human control the white fang, and it resulted in failure, and a bit of subtle questioning about his leadership.

 _What the heck, we could use a laugh._ "Whatever you have planned, it better not disturb my call; I have an important offer from a client who says they can help us."

"Oh, you mean Madame glass-ass?" Party Poison asked the fellow redhead faunus.

Ronin knew he hit the nail on the head as a look of shock spread across Adam's face. After all, he didn't believe anyone to be crazy enough to insult Cinder of all people.

"How do you know about-?"

"You know I'd love to stay and chat but I have drugs to sell." With that last statement, Adam's jaw dropped, and Ronin considered it a personal accomplishment that he was the cause of the bull's priceless look.

As the possibly insane devil left Adam's private 'office', which was more like a war room, said bull was preparing the room for his collect call from 'the generals'.

Adam proceeded to open a drawer on his wooden desk, revealing a mask almost identical to his current one; with the exception being it appeared to be a visor of sorts.

As he swapped masks, he started undergoing the necessary procedures. Starting with the press of a small, nearly invisible button on the side of his new mask. This was a special mask, the one he used to secure any of his more important and private calls; not even Gamma was allowed to do this for him; she was trustworthy, but he wasn't willing to risk anything.

Another helpful function of the special mask was the display showing what precautions still needed to be set up before the call actually began. First, it read 'lock the door' as to make sure no one barged in. Next, he set up the hidden monitor that had been built into the desk board, courtesy of the small button just underneath it. It was an overused tactic to conceal something so important underneath a desk of all places, but everyone knew that; it was so cliche that no one would suspect it. Next, doubling as the switch to turn on the monitor, Adam pressed the button that activated a special EMP he kept on himself as both an infiltration device, and as a means to disarm certain opponents. But the intended effect it was used for, was to destroy any wiretaps in his office.

It was an ingenious method, seeing as he could take these devices with him and easily replace them via Gamma; she was always building new ones. And not just monitors, but all sorts of new defense mechanisms around the base. _It will be interesting to see how she handles the news about her reoccupation._ Since her work with securing the recuperating outpost was completed, she was to be reassigned to a new outpost to work from.

But that was a battle for another time. Right now, he had to further his negotiations with Cinder on how to approach future plans considering the remaining forces that are still able to fight. If any more setbacks came into play, they were screwed.

"Open channel twenty fi-"

" _ **Look alive, Sunshine!"**_

"The fuck?" Adam almost jumped out of his seat in surprise; his hand tightly gripping the hilt of his sword by instinct. Now he was glad he hadn't completed protocol, otherwise Cinder would have been greeted to some rather unexpected music.

 _Someone is about to be put down!_

Adam's irritation was palpable, radiating from his aura as the bizarre voice continued his strange rant.

By the time Adam had reset the system so no one found out about the separate channel, the ranter had ended his tempo, and started the show.

" _ **Killjoys, MAKE SOME NOISE!"**_

It was in that moment that Adam decided that enough was enough. He quickly put everything back in its place, careful to leave no trace of his activities, and silently marched out of his office; closing the door behind him with a firm slam. He walked a mere three feet when he heard what sounded like a riot down the hall, there were only a few grunts out here, most of them loitering and talking amongst themselves; the only place big enough in the base to hold that many faunus was the cafeteria.

Unsurprisingly, his hunch was correct, but he didn't expect the scene before him.

 _Thank Oum, nobody with a camera is here to see this. This is the equivalency of a zoo feeding frenzy._

It was as if every faunus in the building was losing their shit. Many were on their feet chanting "na nana na", bobbing their heads along to the beat. Adam hadn't seen this much enthusiasm in his comrades, their moods had been dampened by the breach, and it seemed that Oso's brawls were the only thing keeping the people going. Well, the ones who wanted to fight anyway.

Other than those few individuals, the place was quiet and in need of an energy booster of sorts; it seemed that this fit the bill. He honestly wasn't surprised by who was in the middle of it all.

The wings gave it away easily, not to mention the ridiculous outfit. If this was what Ronin meant about raising morale, then he was doing a damned good job, but this was escalating rather quickly.

Too quickly. Without a goal to direct them towards, this could become self-destructive. Not to mention, he still had to organize the next part of the plan with Cinder, and he couldn't do it with all this noise. With a solid conviction, Adam tried to make his way to the source of his dilemma.

Only to realize it was a bad plan.

Getting to the newly red haired basket case was a challenge enough, with everyone in a violent trance of what appeared to be pent up nostalgia. He nearly lost his head a few times to some of the people having resorted to throwing stuff. As he neared, what he guessed to be the 'Killjoy' the ranter had told to 'make some noise', Adam was forced to dive the rest of the distance, as Oso got caught in the hype and threw another white fang member.

The only sound the poor sap made before crashing into the tables was a resounding cry.

"Ronin!" he attempted to shout, but the winged faunus didn't seem to hear him over the music, and the cheering crowd wasn't helping either. He was tempted to try again, but he knew it would end with the same result, and so he continued to try and push his way through the restless crowd.

It took twice as long to get out than it did to get in, but once he finally managed to do so, he knew where he needed to go to stop the frenzy.

"Not a fan of Gerard Way?" Adam forgot that a handful of members hadn't fallen into madness like the others.

"Gerard who?" Adam was oblivious to the name that was famous amongst the faunus.

Both of the faunus guards were surprised to hear that Adam Taurus, Hero of the White Fang and now unchallenged leader of said group, had never heard of the most popular vocalist of any faunus.

The guard on the left side of the door was the first to ask the blatant question. "No offense Adam, but how the hell do you not know of Gerard Way? He was the lead singer of MCR!"

"I don't have time to explain my music of choice; we need to stop this before they tear apart the whole building. You two, come with me!" Adam headed to his new destination, the two masked faunus trailing behind him without question.

* * *

"Come on, Milkshake, work it!"

After 'Dr. Death Defy' passed the spotlight to Party Poison, Gamma set the mic down to find that Neo had started dancing to the music of Gerard Way. _At least she has good taste in music._ And with Ronin taking the spotlight, she decided to join 'Milkshake' in the exuberant dancing.

' _Less yapping, more nanana-ing!'_ Neo typed in response.

"More what?!"

Both girls turned, startled by the sudden appearance of the bull faunus, and the two other nameless grunts that had taken refuge in the doorway. Even with the mask on, it was easy to see that he was irritated. It was also obvious that he was staring pointedly at Gamma. After all, she was the only person that could have operated the PA; she didn't allow anyone else in here, and Neo and he were the only real exceptions to that unspoken rule.

Then Gamma realized the impromptu concert had broken one of the SPOKEN rules: You don't interrupt Adam while he's working.

' _Well, f* k.'_ Neo wasn't dancing anymore.

"You said it, Milkshake." Gamma had enough sense to do the same.

"What the hell is going on?" Adam's voice was dangerously calm, holding the slightest hint of exasperation.

"Umm… impromptu rock opera." Gamma could only shrug sheepishly.

"Well, consider this opera, mute!"

' _I'M STANDING RIGHT HERE, ASS HOLE!'_ Neo had forgotten about caps lock...and censorship.

"Adam, do you see the energy Ronin has elicited from them? We may be able to use that to gain a stronger foothold, and regain lost morale!"

"I understand the long term advantage, Gamma, but right now, we still need to mute the mad house."

' _I'M SHORT, NOT INVISIBLE!'_ Neo didn't forget about the caps lock that time.

After a short stare down between Gamma and Adam, Gamma desisted and passed the mic to Adam; she plopped down into her chair with a scowl.

The bull faunus was quick with his demands over the PA, stopping the music, and replacing it with a voice that demanded attention and obedience.

"Attention brothers and sisters of the fang, although your excitement is warranted, now is not an ideal time to waste that strength," He glanced pointedly at Neo and Gamma. "And so I request that you stop your raving for the evening, and save that strength for the next phase of our future plans."

Gamma's ears perked slightly at that announcement. Adam hadn't had her do any digging or scouting recently, so this 'plan' must have been brought on by one of his private associates, or at least was in progress.

Whether the others knew that tid-bit or not, they didn't seem to mind. At the mere mention of another step in their approach, the whole room cheered in response.

"Gerard, meet me in the security room ASAP, we need to have a quick discussion. The rest of the 'killjoys' are to clean up the aftermath of the flash concert held in the cafeteria."

As the newly enthusiastic members of the fang got to work on removing the remains of the animalistic nature having been ever-present, Adam turned off the mic so he could ask Gamma and 'Milkshake' a few questions.

"Now that that was taken care of, what the hell were you thinking?" Adam aimed the question at both of the questionably murderous women. The two made eye contact for a brief moment before answering, Neo going to her scroll and Gamma opting to use her voice.

"That music brings people together."

' _And lightens moods.'_

"Inspires people too."

' _Also, less damage, and no more need for that bear's brawls.'_

Adam was beyond speechless. Never in her time in the White Fang, had Neo **ever** worked alongside Gamma in an argument. The two were like fire and ice, or according to Neo, like an agitated dog and alley cat. Although the detail of less damage was debatable, both girls had made valid claims.

"OK, but why is Ronin going by the name 'Gerard Way'?"

"Because it's my name, legally speaking." Gerard/Ronin walked into the security room with his wings held high and a shit-eating grin that would put a certain blonde brawler to shame.

"What do you mean 'legally speaking'?" Adam was beyond fed up.

"Not important right now. What is important is the fact that you're standing here talking to us, while _she_ is waiting for you to pick up the scroll."

If Adam hadn't been wearing his mask, then the other occupants of the room were sure to have seen his deer in the headlights expression.

Neo and Gamma wasted no time teasing Adam and trying to figure out who _she_ was.

' _OOOH, is someone riding the bull?'_

Gamma snickered as she read the message on Neo's scroll. "You think she wears red to bed to get him charging her?" The furious blush that bloomed along the lower half of Adam's face was enough to elicit a stream of laughter from both Gamma and Ronin, and a smirk from Neo.

Through clenched teeth, Adam thanked Ronin for the reminder before heading out.

 _Damn it, Ronin!_ Now he was thirteen minutes late for the call. If there was one thing you never do to Cinder Fall, it was make her wait, when she says to do something.

The repercussions were, quite literally, murder.

As soon as Adam stepped into his office, he quickly shut the door behind him; he didn't bother to lock it, he was already behind schedule.

"Open channel twenty five!"

The computer system in the office registered the request and projected the meeting on the desk itself.

A number of faces were present on the projection, all of which were blacked out to anyone who wasn't wearing one of the masks. Adam recognized a few of the people displayed: Roman Torchwick, the prior leader of the White Fang, and current resident of the Atlesian military prison; and Cinder Fall, current head of the operations that are now unfolding across Vale. The rest of the unamused court of criminals was complete strangers to him.

"Well, the bull finally decided to rear his horns." the former wearer of bowler hats stated in thick irritation.

"Sorry for the delay."

Cinder was not in an apologetic mood. "Care to explain why you're late?"

"That would be my fault, Glass Ass!" Gerard exclaimed as he strutted into Adam's office.

Adam turned to him instantly, absolutely mortified at what Gerard was starting.

"What did you just call me?" The venom in her voice would kill most humans.

"What, don't like Glass Ass? How about Cinder balls?"

 _You dumbass! You're going to get us all killed!_

But with that thought ever present on his face, the killjoy either ignored or didn't care. "What's wrong Cinder ball sucker, cat got your tongue?"

As Cinder attempted to keep her composure, Gerard spotted the punchline to his joke. "Oh, there's my water jug!"

"Great, now that the poultry has found his drink, lets-"

"Bitch, shut up." And with that last statement, Gerard flipped his jug over, and smashed it into the overhead projector.

Adam paled at the final nail in the coffin. The entire white Fang, gone with one stupid bird's action.

And Ronin was on top of the world!

"HAHAHA, don't fuck with a teenager!"

"I thought you were eighteen?" Both Gerard and Adam turned to see Neo and Gamma in the doorway.

"Don't ruin the moment, Rotty." Ronin turned back to the now fully fledged leader of the White Fang. No more puppet masters, no more orders, no more Cinder balls.

' _For now at least.'_

"Ruin the moment... RUIN THE MOMENT?! WHAT WOULD THAT BE YOU IDIOT?!" As far as Adam was concerned, every moment had been ruined.

"The moment when faunus became truly independent of human interaction and support. And I know just the way to celebrate."

' _Are we getting another concert?'_ Neo and Gamma had walked into the room now having given their presence away.

"Technically, yes."

Adam wasn't completely sold on what the red-dyed pigeon had to offer over Cinder Balls-FALL! _Shit!_ "And how would that help in the slightest?"

With a mischievous smile, only made creepier with Ronin's devilish appearance, he answer vaguely, "All in due time, Adam, but first, I'm gonna need a black marching band uniform, hair dye remover… and a microphone."

* * *

 _ **That morning at Beacon...**_

"Um, Azure, would you please move your hand?"

Azure stirred awake in a groggy state, aside her new friend, Ethra. Who's breast she had inadvertently grabbed while sleeping.

"Oh, shit! Sorry." Azure's face felt red hot as she quickly removed the offending limb from Ethra's… assets. "I'm a cuddler."

"I noticed. You grabbed my ass twice last night." Azure could have been mistaken for Ruby's cloak after that remark, and with the reaction came a good chuckle from Ethra. "Relax, I was kidding." The smirk on her face practically screamed mischief.

Ethra was quick to allow a wild punch to pass through her shoulder, ignoring Azure's sigh of defeat, "Why must you be a ghost dammit…"

"Can you teach me that trick?" Yang was rubbing her now sore shoulder from taking her own joke too far with Ruby. "Ruby can get angry in the morning."

"I said I was sorry, and I couldn't breathe with you smothering me."

Ruby had no problem loaning her bed to Azure and Ethra for the night when they needed to crash, though she forgot to factor in her sister into the equation.

"The next time I have to bunk with someone, I'll choose Weiss."

"YOU WILL NOT!" The heiress was horrified at having her partner share a bed with her. Sure Ruby didn't roll around too much during the night like Blake apparently did, but if people had found out she did so, the rumors about her and Ruby would skyrocket.

Ruby hadn't taken that thought into account yet, because she had her now signature doe eyes trained on her partner due to the overreaction.

"Hey! Keep those holstered, alright?" Yang decided to intervene before the ice queen caved and did her homework for a month. "Might I remind you of the rumors about you and Weiss making out?"

"OK, first of all, the rumor was that we were _going_ out, not _making_ out; Second, we all know that those rumors aren't true." Ruby defended her partner and herself, whilst puffing out her cheeks. Normally, she wasn't a fan of making such a gesture, but given the circumstances of what people have said about the pair have made her think of ways to deter such thoughts. One method she tried was reminding her fellow classmates that she was the YOUNGEST PERSON IN THE SCHOOL!

"Still, that won't stop people from getting the wrong idea." Weiss backed up Yang's reasoning to keep her best friend from feeling insulted.

Ruby took this perspective into account, and realized, after last night's fiasco, they don't need any more misconceptions about the two.

"Get this beast off of me!"

"Looks like the ferocious feline is awake." Ethra noted as she placed her hand on her deceptive weapon in case Blake would try to get revenge.

Ruby and Yang both turned their attention to Blake, whom they had to cuff to Weiss' bed as a safety precaution.

"Would someone like to tell me why I'm cuffed here?"

"Weiss and Ruby were worried that you would be out for Zwei's head after what he did last night." Yang explained as she unlocked Blake's cuffs.

"Please don't kill him Blake, I'm sure it was an accident!" Blake tried to stop herself from looking, but she was too late. Ruby had pulled her well-practiced sad puppy eyes, and Blake was soon putty in Ruby's pale, yet soft, hands.

"Alright, I promise to murder the mutt for… whatever he did last night."

That statement took a number of the room's occupants by surprise, all except for Weiss, who suspected as much.

"Allow me to explain…"

"Nope!" Before Weiss could even begin to explain the night before, Ruby dashed over to Weiss covering her mouth and sending up rose petals from her semblance.

"Ruby, what are you doing?" Weiss managed to get her partner's hand off her mouth, successfully resisting the urge to bite it as a form of scolding. The thought of even considering such an action, surprised her, however, helping her confirm that her team had _corrupted_ her.

"I want to tell Blake what happened last night!" The look of worry from Ruby perplexed Weiss.

"What about last night has you so eager to tell Blake about it?"

"No offense, Ice Queen, but you have the tendency to be more open and shut when recalling past events."

"And what's wrong with that?" Weiss asked not quite recieving the message.

"Well…" Ruby started, not wanting to get Weiss riled up so early in the day. "When you explain, you kind of make certain parts sound worse than they actually were."

"Well, how do you sugar coat being tackled by an adorable corgi?"

"Apparently, like that." Ethra intervened, an amused smirk playing on her lips.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that tackle resulted in the migraine you're suffering." Azure said from her new perch on fort Ruby. Her suspicions were confirmed when Blake turned to her a bit too quickly, and she winced before pressing a palm to her temple.

"How did you know?" Amber eyes bore into Azure's own lavender ones, more out of pain than shock.

She shrugged, "Your aura is kind of pooling around your temporal bone, where your temple is, and spreading out from there, Indicating a migraine which should probably be treated with a heat pack or medicine."

"Who needs a heat pack when you have a hot rack?" Yang jokingly stated as she dropped from her bed. "Just stick close to me during school today. You'll be just fine once the day's over."

"While I appreciate the offer Yang, I think a couple aspirin will do the job just fine."

"You want an ass print? Ah crap, I think she took some brain damage. Either that or she's one kinky kitty."

The reactions from Ethra's audience were priceless to the clever sneak. Ruby groaned, thinking that her sister had somehow multiplied, Weiss fearing the same thing, and Yang merely gave her a triumphant thumbs up and a laugh from her and Azure to boot.

Blake winced at the sudden noise, clearly in pain.

"If you think aspirin is going to dull pain that sensitive, you're either two things: inexperienced, or a masochist." Her tone was sharp, a hint of concern lacing her words. "A little rest and some old fashion dust treatments should do the trick however."

"Couldn't you have just told me that without tearing open my skull?"

"Where's the fun in that? Besides, Ruby told me how stubborn you can be." The red cloaked teen sent a sheepish, yet guilty look at her teammate. "You shouldn't hide your pain, even if it's something as minor as a migraine."

"I appreciate the concern Ruby, but you shouldn't be telling people I don't know about me." A nervous chuckle, and a quick apology was passed between the two.

"Well, why don't we fix that? I'm Azure and that's Ethra. Better?"

"Names aren't going to be enough. Why are you in my team's room, for one thing?"

"Whelp, we'll be bunking with you guys until further notice of course!" A cheeky grin overtook her features.

Fortunately for Blake, she wasn't the only one in the dark about the details of the new sleeping arrangements. At the mention of the two bunking in RWBY's room for longer, both Weiss and Yang were caught off guard as well. The only member of the team that wasn't surprised was their fearless leader.

Though the stares she was getting from her team almost scared her stiff, to be honest.

"What? I said they were going to be bunking with us." Her teammates stared back at her, blatant surprise radiating from them. "... Didn't I say that?"

"We thought you meant for the night!"

"Ruby Rose, what made you think that you could make such a decision without consulting us first?"

"Um, because it wasn't my decision?" She offered weakly, shrinking a bit under her partner's harsh gaze. Weiss was not satisfied with this revelation. In fact it seemed as though her displeasure was taking on a tangible form around her,

"If this wasn't one of your crazy ideas, then who was idiotic enough to allow such an arrangement?" The remaining members of RWBY leaned in closer to hear her response.

"The headmaster and Ms. Goodwitch." Confused silence enveloped the room.

"Why would they-" Weiss was about to continue, when Yang stopped her.

"Hold on, how about we stop for a second and take a breath. Let's start with what happened last night, and work from there?"

"Please and thank you." Exclaimed Ruby.

Clearing her throat as though she were preparing for a speech, Azure began to recount their evening excursion, starting with the musings of a presumptuous asshole.

 _ **Last Night…**_

"OK, there's Beacon, that's the door; please, do let it hit you on the way out."

Lewis had been tasked with escorting the trio to Beacon; he had simply been instructed to make sure they _arrived_ at the school, anything that occurred outside of that was out of his capable hands.

"Gee, thanks. Next time we go to Vale, we'll drop by your office for a ride-along." Ruby promised with a sickeningly sweet smile that Ethra could tell, screamed _fuck you too._ Though with Ruby, it was probably something more along the lines of ' _at least we DO our jobs'._

The mere thought of having to see the huntresses again was horrifying to Lewis, and he immediately hightailed it off the cliff, wishing that the whole school could tumble into the sea.

With the airship having left, the trio stood at the landing pad, gazing at the looming school; the sight elicited a different feeling for each of them.

Ethra was grinning ear to ear at the sight of the renowned school. She couldn't wrap her mind around the fact that she was about to start attending Beacon Academy! She had been preparing for this day for years, and her dream was finally becoming a reality; even if it started off in the strangest way.

Ruby let out a pent up breath as she let the feeling of home come to her. Even if it had only been a few hours, she had missed the comfort of being within Beacon's massive walls. As Ruby took in the view that never ceased to leave her in a state of awe, she thought back to the day she first arrived at Beacon and how she felt then compared to now; she could only chuckle at the rate she changed her mind.

Azure seemed to be the only one amongst them that was indifferent about the magnificent structure. After all she had practically grown up here, and had become used to the grandeur that was Beacon. Regardless, she couldn't deny that it was a beautiful sight to behold. _It'll be nice to spend more time with mom and pops._

"Wow." Ethra was the first to speak, she didn't really know how else to put her amazement into words.

"Just for the record, it never gets old." Ruby put Ethra's worries to rest with that certainty, only made more so by the near childish joy laced in her voice, and thus began walking to her room. "Follow me."

"Lead on, Red Reaper." Ethra and Azure replied in sync.

Ruby did lead them, but not to her room; to everywhere but her room.

Around the third time they arrived at the entrance, again, Ethra had enough.

"Do you even know where we're going?"

"I was just gonna follow my nose, I have no idea where my room is." Ruby explained. She remembers, obviously, but considering who Azure's parents were, Ruby decided to give in to her curiosity, and see what Glynda was like as a mother, and tell Yang all about it when she had the-

 _Oh crap, Yang!_ Ruby realized two things at the thought of her sister: 1.) She needed to tell her that they had arrived, and 2.) She needed to apologize for snapping at her. Ruby had only ever called Yang by her last name once, and she'd rather not go through that day again.

"Hold on, I need to message Yang." She quickly typed a message to her sister saying they had arrived, and that the three of them would be there soon.

"Wait, why didn't you ask her where your room is?" Azure thought to remind Ruby who she was texting.

 _Crud, she's right! Oh, wait..._

"I'd rather not. It's embarrassing to ask your sister where your own room is." Ruby tried her best to sound somewhat convincing with her lie, even managing a fake blush.

They didn't buy it.

"Points for the blush, we'll give you that." Ethra wasn't gonna continue with the train wreck, considering she had seen enough of those in her life. Figurative, not literal.

"Ruby, why are you lying to us?" Both Ruby and Ethra were surprised by the look on Azure's face as she displayed an emotion they had not expected from the purple haze, nor for it to feel so effective.

Disappointment.

Ruby didn't know why, but when she saw the look in Azure's eyes, she felt a prominent twinge of guilt in her chest: a guilt that felt more wounding than it should. "Because… I wanted to know what your family is like."

Azure and Ethra were clueless as to what Ruby was talking about.

"When I found out you were Ozpin's daughter I wa-"

"YOUR OZPIN'S DAUGHTER?!" Ethra nearly jumped out of her skin at the mention of such relations.

"NO, I'm- well, it's somewhat complicated. Glynda Goodwitch is my mother and Ozpin sort of filled in the role of my father considering the way the two interact."

"Who was your real dad?" Ethra was intrigued with who Glynda had shacked up with.

"I don't know, neither does mom." Azure answered with mild curiosity. The look from Ruby and Ethra said they misunderstood the scenario. Ethra more than Ruby.

"Wow, Glynda must really love the-"

"NO!" Azure's expression was a mix of mortified and disgusted.

"I was gonna say the nightlife."

"Ethra, even I knew what you were going to say." Ruby may act childish, but she was no child; being related to Yang had its pros and cons. The fact that she knew what Ethra really meant was debateable whether it was one or the other.

"Let me clarify, Glynda is my _adoptive_ mother, not my biological mother."

Both girls had looks of realization at the revealed detail. Though Ruby still needed to explain why, since Ethra interrupted her.

"Anyway, after I heard about your relations with Pr. Ozpin and Ms. Goodwitch, I REALLY wanted to see how she acts as a mother."

With that statement, Azure saw an opportunity for a real joke; she knew for a fact that her parents were probably watching them from one the many security feeds in the school. ' _I hope you're watching mom.'_ She was staring knowingly at one of the cameras, a small and discreet smile played on her lips.

Meanwhile, in the headmaster's office, it seemed that Azure's hunch was correct. "Don't you dare, Azurine." Glynda knew what the look in Azure's eyes meant. So did Ozpin, who was generous enough to put up the feed on the computer on his desk.

"I believe she does dare." Ozpin watched the scene unfold from the comfort of his office chair.

Glynda was mortified with the opportunity presented to her daughter. Given the joke she pulled with her birthday gift, just two days ago, she didn't want to know what the crude haze had in store.

"She treats me like I'm made of gold and glass." Azure deadpanned, all traces of mischief erased from her features. The turn from mischief to serious took the other two by surprise, Azure was ignorant of the change. "She spoils me endlessly, and so long as I don't blow something up I can get whatever I want." She shrugged. "I can't complain about a doting mother now can I?" She paused for a moment. "Maybe the boyfriends though," Ethra and Ruby blanched. "Possibly with how overly overprotective she is too. Other than that, she's an awesome mom."

"What do you mean, _overly_ overprotective?" Ruby's own father was overprotective, but apparently, Glynda was far worse.

"Well, for one thing, she made our entire neighborhood move as a precaution, just because I gave a pretty brutish looking homeless man four lien." She took in her fellow trainees looks of disbelief. "It's true. Never saw ol' man Bill again, and that is just the tip of Mt. Glynda."

' _Oh God, not that again!'_ Glynda cover her face with her hands in defeat at her daughter's next ploy; Ozpin was grinning in anticipation. "20 lien says she goes on to boyfriends next."

"At least Bill had it easier than my ex's."

"Called it." Ozpin took a sip from his mug, which had magically appeared in his hand like always, at least it seemed to for most people.

' _Time to pull out Barnabie.'_

The look on Azure's face told Glynda what was next. ' _Not Barnabie!'_ She damn near face palmed.

"What happened exactly?" Ethra inquired, curiosity laced her voice.

Azure shivered."I'll put it like this," The two leaned forward in apprehension. "She almost castrated Barnabie; he was lucky I was there to knock her out of the way." She pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh. "Thankfully he only got a nik on the thigh. I did not need to be sued for attempted mutilation."

Azure knew her storytelling skills were without peer, but Ruby knew that this was ursa crap. For some weird reason, Ruby had noted every sign that Azure was lying through her teeth. From the twirling of her hair with her finger, to the double finger tip poking she herself did when she wasn't sincere; not to mention that she seemed to pinch the bridge of her nose to keep from laughing, though it was very discreet, much like Yang's tik during her old stories. Ethra, on the other hand fell for every word, not having known Glynda prior to today. Though both looked absolutely horrified.

' _Thank you Barnabie.'_

"Ok, that's… interesting." Ethra almost felt like stabilizing herself on the wall next to her. Almost.

"And I thought my dad was bad! We need to tell Ozpin."

Azure's internal laughter and merriment instantly changed to matched her external appearance of dread at that statement.

And Glynda's humiliation suddenly changed to giddiness.

"What?" Azure wished she had heard wrong, but it was not to be.

Ruby knew that Glynda was not one for jokes, and if this story spread, then Glynda would go from Goodwitch to Evilwitch with the click of her heels. Not to mention, "We still need to report to Ozpin and let him know that you guys are here now."

Azure's tanned skin seemed to pale sightly, a nervous look spread across her features. "Do we have to? I mean you could always just call from your scroll, right?"

 _Now to return the favor._ "He stated that he wanted all of us to report to his office, in person, once we arrived at the school."

' _Shit!'_

"Remind me to thank Ms. Rose when they get here." Glynda readied herself for a counter attack once the trio arrived at the top floor.

"Exactly how far are you planning on going with this, Glynda?"

"Ozpin, she's been trying to get me to teach her our old tricks, why not start now?"

"I'm sorry, was that an invitation, I heard?"

Glynda looked back at her oldest friend, and former partner in delinquency. "She knows that Barnabie means war, she knows of the consequences."

"Then might I suggest the window." With those words, Ozpin opened the doors to the office balcony, an evil grin he hadn't shown since he and Glynda were students themselves surfaced.

"Now let's get into character, 'honey'." she finished with an exaggerated expression.

As the elevator continued to climb, so did Azure's dread at what her mother would have in store. The only thing that seemed to keep them from reaching their limits was Ruby's humming.

"Is that 'Red Like Roses'?" she asked taking her mind off of the impending horror.

"Yep, my mother used to hum it to me be-"

"Before bed." Azure couldn't stop her own mouth.

"How did you know?" Ruby was both curious and surprised that Azure knew when her mother would sing for her.

"She may not seem like the type, but my mother sung it to me before bed, as well." _Good, that's believable._

"AZURINE!" Just as the doors of the elevator opened, a shout brought everyone's attention to a certain blonde woman; tear tracks trailing down her face.

"Well fuck me." Azure mumbled quietly, dread filling her voice.

As the trio entered the usually calm office, Azure was quickly wrapped in her mother's sobbing embrace.

Ethra felt awkward watching the scene, but Ruby had become speechless as she witnessed this turn of events.

"Dear Oum, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?! ARE YOU HURT?! ANY BROKEN BONES?! GOD LET ME GET THE FIRST AID KIT! OZPIN WHERE'S THE FUCKING KIT IN THIS OFFICE?!" Glynda was frantic checking Azure for any signs of harm. Then her eyes went to the cloak Azure was wearing. "WHERE DID YOU GET THIS? THIS COULD SMOTHER YOU IN YOUR SLEEP! OZPIN GET RID OF THIS!"

"As you wish Glynda." As Glynda handed Ozpin the cloak, Azure tried to get a word in but was quickly hushed by her mother.

"No don't talk. You need water, RUBY! Get Azure water! NOW!"

Ruby nearly fell backwards scrambling to find Azure water, using her semblance and the stairs to find the nearest water cooler. It was easy enough to find, but Ruby forgot that once she stopped using her semblance, the water would go flying, which ended up getting all over Azure, who was trying to save her precious cloak.

"RUBY ROSE, ARE YOU TRYING TO GIVE HER A COLD?!" Glynda looked like she was about to stab Ruby with the syringe she had in her hand as she approached the student who got her daughter all wet. Before she stepped any closer, Azure jumped in between the two attempting to keep her mother from stabbing Ruby holding both hands in front of her mother. As soon as Glynda laid eyes on the gloves, she saw the finale to her performance. "WHERE DID YOU GET **THESE?!** YOU KNOW THAT YOU AREN'T ALLOWED TO FIGHT! OZPIN!"

Glynda slipped the gloves off of Azure's hands with ease and balled them together and threw them to Ozpin, who was currently standing at the balcony with Azure's cloak in hand. He caught the gloves and proceeded to wrap all of it together for disposal.

"Wait, Ozpi-Mmph!" Glynda covered her mouth again so she wouldn't speak and damage her voice. Glynda quickly took out her riding crop, and shot Azure's cloak and gloves into the sky, where Ozpin soon shot it as well, like a skeet, where the contents blew up into pieces.

"NO! MY BABIES!" Azure freed herself from her mother grip and ran out to the balcony to see her most valued possessions be blown to Mystral. Ruby, Ethra, and Glynda soon joined her, each with a different look on their face.

"What's wrong Azure, no longer a fan of the _doting mother?"_ Glynda's tone had instantly changed once everyone was on the balcony. The tear stains had been wiped off with a handkerchief that Ozpin offered her.

"Couldn't you have just grounded me?" Azure inquired meekly, mentally exhausted by the ordeal and loss of her stuff.

"Honestly Azure, do you really believe we would obliterate your birthday present two days after you got it?" With a quick flick of her wrist Azure's possessions were brought back from the skies in perfect condition.

Ruby and Ethra, however, were still processing what had happened. Ruby connected the dots rather quickly, but Ethra was still confused; she honestly had no clue what just occurred. "Could someone explain?" She asked unsurely, turning to Ruby.

"I think it would be best if I explained." Ozpin lead Ruby and Ethra back into his office, leaving Azure and Glynda to catch up and have some much needed mother-daughter time.

"So, how much did you learn from your experiments?" To most, this would seem like a bad way to start a conversation with their child, appearing that priorities may be confused, business over family. But Glynda had learned a long time ago, that this was how she should start their conversations. "Any new tricks, or discoveries?"

"Just messing around with fusion," She leaned against the railing of the balcony. "It would work perfectly if it didn't keep blowing up in my face."

"I'm hoping the house hasn't suffered the same fate." Glynda acknowledged her thoughts with a small grin, handing Azure her cloak and gloves, which she promptly put back on.

"...Of course not. I learned my lesson the last time; I won't go anywhere near the plumbing...again." She shuddered, she did not want to make another indoor ocean. The results had been terrible: a ruined home, tainted experiments, and to top it all off, a **very** pissed off mother. She'd learned to be more careful, and she'd also been given her mini arena around the same time to prevent further… accidents.

 _Accidents…_

Azure suddenly paled as the scene from today played in her head, now affecting her non-caffeinated mind. Glynda took notice of this, and soon acted a fraction like she did back inside. "Azure, are you ok?"

Azure contemplated telling her mother, but she had had enough of the scene for one day, and decided to tell her about the incident tomorrow. "I'm fine." She settled for a shorter response, it was easier to keep her voice from wavering. "Just tired, and possibly going to experience a caffeine crash soon, nothing to worry about."She managed a small smile, hoping it didn't seem fake.

Glynda watched her for a moment, noting the slight tense in her posture, but she let it slide; Azure would tell her whenever she was ready. She took a quick peek at her scroll, "Well, it is 8:15, how about we go grab dinner in the dining hall?"

"Actually, Ruby invited Ethra and I to join her team for dinner."

Glynda did a quick double take, it was surprising that she didn't get whiplash. "Wait, you said yes?"

"Took me by surprise, too." _Damnit Rose!_

"She's waking up, isn't she?" Glynda knew what was happening, and so did Azure. It was one of the reasons why she never enrolled at Beacon.

"I'm not sure if she was ever even asleep; I think it's more of an instinctual inheritance." She scratched the back of her neck sheepishly, much like Ruby did when unsure of something. "It's a little hard trying to figure out when she'll just show up, seeing as I don't really have any sort of cap on her emotions."

"You sure it's not a matter of certain stimuli and factors?" _Thank Oum for the ability to accept and understand such science._ When Glynda first adopted Azure, she was worried she would have to talk about what girls usually talked about when she was a kid. Oum was she lucky her daughter was a registered genius. Glynda was mortified at the thought of having to speak baby talk, not to mention the amount of time she needed to be there for her considering her job would get in the way for awhile. But Azure was, luckily, the perfect daughter for her.

And Glynda was the perfect mother for Azure, even if she only understood a fraction of her scientific knowledge. She had only been a toddler during the whole adoption process, an estimated three year old, but she could tell that Glynda was a capable mother. She was strict to a certain degree, but fair, she was patient, and nurturing in her own way; it also helped that they'd spend a bit of one on one time together whenever the opportunity arose. She had never really felt lonely or unloved when Glynda wasn't around to care for her, she actually enjoyed being left to her own devices, and Glynda knew this; Azure was always allowed a bit of space when she was around, but it was moments like these that she enjoyed the most. "Completely, I already investigated that theory."

"Of course you have, you've already learned to think ahead."

"Welp, my mother is the best teacher I know; literally and figuratively." A grin spread across her features, one that spoke volumes and warmed Glynda's heart. With that last statement, the chill from the night air finally registered in Azure's head, and she wrapped her cloak tighter around her form. "I think it's time we go back in. Pops is probably finishing up on his end."

As Ozpin was finishing up his breakdown of the hectic scene, Azure and Glynda made their way back into his office.

"If that was light punishment, I'd hate to see capital punishment." Ethra had donned a look of relief and incredulity.

Ruby was just smiling like she always did when things went from bizarre to normal. Speaking of both, she forgot an important meal her team was cooking up.

"Um, Pr. Ozpin, do you mind if we could be excused?"

"Of course, however, by the small blood stain on Ms. Vale's ankle, I expect the three of you to meet with me at 9:15 tomorrow."

"Thanks, now I'm going to vomit, scream, and run to the nearest bathroom. Not necessarily in that order." Ethra starred in disgust at the small crimson stain that also had what appeared to be a chunk of ear accompanying it.

As the trio entered the elevator, Azure quickly gave Ozpin a hug since she hadn't given him a proper greeting since their arrival. "Oh wait!" She pulled away from him for a moment. "Where are we gonna sleep tonight?"

"Don't they already have rooms prepared for us?" Ethra thought that preparations had already been made, given the extent Ozpin went to bring them both to the school.

Ozpin explained the lack of excess rooms."Normally, we would have those ready, yes, but due to the visiting students, we've run low on dorms."

"And the room we did have for you had suffered heavy damage after one of our students received some bad news concerning her partner." Glynda was sugar coating Nora's reaction to finding out Ren was in a coma.

"No problem, they can bunk in my room." Ruby exclaimed with glee. She had no problems with having them bunk in her room, and Yang would be ok. The only issue was getting Weiss to allow it, and Blake's ears. Even after Blake's performance against the grimms and the breach, instead of easing her fears of having her ears seen in public, she even bought a hoodie to wear in case she lost the bow.

Before any form of protest could be made, the doors closed on the group, and the trio began on the last leg of their trek.

Within the office however, Glynda's once stoic expression had been replaced with a frown of concern. She turned to Ozpin, who had decided to sit down at his desk once again, "Do you think she'll be able to handle this on her own?" She directed the question at Ozpin as she went back to her scroll, just like always.

"She'll be fine," He set his mug down with a nearly inaudible thump. "She already knows how to deal with them should the need arise."

Glynda paused, her fingers hovering just above the screen before she sighed and gave Ozpin her attention. "I know that," She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, "But can she handle _her_?"

"Like I said, _she_ will be fine. She always knows when something needs to stay quiet, and the sisters were never an exception." Ozpin knew about Azure's _fondness_ towards Ruby and Yang, but he had faith in _her_.

Glynda, however, could tell that something else was drawing out that fondness to dangerous levels. "But that was before she even met them in person; sleeping in the same room with them may trigger an unforeseen consequence."

The hitch in Glynda's voice gave it all away to Ozpin right then and there. "Glynda, are you afraid that she'll return and blame you?"

"I'm terrified by the possibility that _if_ she does come back, we'll lose Azure." She didn't care that she looked weak in front of Ozpin, Glynda knew he would understand her fear better than anyone.

"In all honesty, I'm more nervous about Ruby's reaction to learning of _**Blood's**_ arrival."

"He's back!?" Glynda exclaimed, nearly dropping her scroll in shock.

"Now you see my point. Azure has proven herself stronger than even we can measure, so the more pressing matter is the 'Beast of Benclave's' return."

As Ozpin brought up the old document, old wounds seemed to reopen for the headmaster, and Glynda remembered her least favorite student.

"Why would Ironwood bring Blood of all people back to Vale? Is he trying to torture us?"

* * *

"Wait, hold on a second."

As the trio further explained the night's prior events, they each started taking turns when the one that was currently talking got tired. Ethra was the current speaker when Blake interrupted.

"Yes?"

"Didn't you guys already leave? How did you hear about this 'Beast' business?"

"Azure made a call to Ms. Goodwitch after the elevator closed, and we just eavesdropped out of boredom." Azure answered like it was a common occurrence.

"You eavesdropped on the headmaster's and his assistant's conversation… Out of boredom?" Weiss could only stare blankly at the trio.

"It was a long elevator. Had to do something." Was Azure's only response to that.

"And I thought I was the one out of this team that had the highest chances of getting expelled, Ruby, what were you thinking?"

"I wanted to end the call, really, but Ethra said it could be a valuable lesson in spying."

"And you believed her?" Blake's stare was the very definition of disapproving. Ruby's silence and her rather pointed stare at the floor spoke for itself.

"That's it. No more cookies. You are officially grounded from all sweets." Yang started her death of Ruby's sweets by going for her secret oatmeal cookie stash that was hidden in what would have been Weiss' bra drawer, if Weiss had actually needed them.

"NO! Yang, stop! Not the oatmeal!" Ruby was all but dragged while she tried to pull Yang from the window, which had a trash can near a sidewalk on the ground below.

"Have mercy Yang, information gathering is an important tool." Ethra defended.

"Besides, it's beyond cruel to separate a woman and her sweets." Azure pitched from her perch.

"Too bad. If my little sister is gonna be a criminal, she should be punished as such."

"Then should I tell dad about the nightclub then?" Ruby asked, having found her opening.

Yang halted just before she let the cookies go. "Are you seriously blackmailing me Ruby?" The idea that her innocent little sister would ever do such a thing was baffling to Yang.

"No, I'm not, but you're hypocrisy is a crime itself." Ruby let go, having bought her precious sweets time to escape a gross fate.

"And might I remind you of my own background?" Blake butted in, referencing her time in the White Fang.

Yang realized her poor choice of words and gave Ruby her cookies back. "I don't approve of it. But I get what you're saying. Maybe I overreacted."

"Well none of us have eaten yet, so why don't we discuss this over breakfast? And why I was handcuffed to my bed since we never got to that." Blake suggested, being the ever present voice of reason in team RWBY.

"As team leader, I suggest we listen to Blake, and devour whatever pancakes are left after Nora has probably eaten all of them."

Having forgotten about Nora's love of pancakes, the residents made quick work of getting ready for the day, and leaving the room to the team's new mascot Zwei, who still had bacon grease stuck in his fangs.

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **DA: AND IT'S FINALLY FUCKING DONE!**

 **Maya: IT'S REAL NIGGA HOURS TOO. This took far too long .**

 **DA: I don't even care about whatever Maya just said, cause now we can move on to other chapters and fics!**

 **Maya: Yeah! Other shit! Aka just be asshats and do nothing for days.**

 **DA: You wish Maya. We are actually planning on releasing a number of other fics, including one for Maya's profile, and a requested one for our friends Reality, Yoshine, and Aethern.**

 **Maya: Meh work is for the weak. I'll be lazy, DA can make plot. :D**

 **DA: Don't you dare, Hendricks!**

 **Maya: :D WHAT DO YOU THINK I'VE BEEN DOING THIS ENTIRE CHAPTER!? XD**

 **DA: You provided plot. And you're a huge part of these fics.**

 **Maya: Naaaaaaaaaaah. Just review you beautiful sons of bitches. Fav, follow, do SOMETHIN'!**

 **DA: Until the next fic, or chapter, thanks for reading. Later.**

 **P.S: DA: After this chapter, we are changing our writing style so that it doesn't feel hollow, and includes better setting and detail. AND IT WON'T TAKE US SIX FUCKING MONTHS TO WRITE!**


End file.
